Trump says he will mark 9/11 25th anniversary at the Pentagon; Vance to attend New York ceremony

WASHINGTON - President Donald Trump said he will mark the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks at the Pentagon, Fox News reported. A White House official said Vice President JD Vance will travel to New York for the Ground Zero ceremony, and administration officials will also be present at the Pennsylvania site.

Asked Friday why he was not planning to be in New York that morning, Trump told reporters at Joint Base Andrews he was going to the Pentagon. White House principal deputy press secretary Anna Kelly said the president will remember those killed, honor their families and pay tribute to first responders.

Nearly 3,000 people died when al-Qaeda hijackers crashed airliners into the World Trade Center and the Pentagon and when United Airlines Flight 93 went down near Shanksville, Pennsylvania. The Ground Zero anniversary ceremony has barred political speeches since 2012 and is run as a solemn reading of names.

Trump disputed reporting that framed the Pentagon visit as a snub of New York. He wrote that the New York ceremony is solemn and that speakers are not part of that program. He attended the Ground Zero ceremony as the 2024 Republican nominee and spoke at the Pentagon on the 24th anniversary in 2025.

A White House official said all three attack sites will be represented. That split mirrors past years when presidents divided duties among New York, Arlington and Shanksville.

For families and first responders, Sept. 11 remains a day of names, silence and service. Local memorials and church services across the country typically follow the same quiet pattern whether or not a president is in Manhattan that morning.