Trump insists ground zero story is ‘exactly accurate’ after deluge of fact checks

President Donald Trump insisted Tuesday that his account of visiting ground zero with construction workers after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks was “exactly accurate,” pushing back against a wave of fact checks examining his recollection.Trump defended the story in a lengthy Truth Social post hours after recounting it during a Tunnel to Towers Foundation ceremony on the White House Ellipse, where he marked the 25th anniversary of the attacks.“The Failing New York Magazine wrote a story that I wasn’t down at the World Trade Center after the Tragedy of September 11th, because nobody saw me there,” Trump said. “Well, I don’t think I would be the first thing on anyone’s mind but, I was there, obviously not on the same day as the collapse, but shortly thereafter, with a large group of Construction Workers.” “I discussed it today during my Remarks on the Ellipse, in Washington, D.C., for Tunnel to Towers,” he continued. “Everything I said was exactly accurate and, to prove the point, I am attaching clips of me there with my people, including my then Head of Security, Matthew Calamari, who has confirmed that very sad trip to Lower Manhattan, many times, to many different Journalists, but it’s a story that just won’t die.”With his post, Trump attached interview clips in which he says he is going to meet with construction workers in New York City two days after the attacks. Trump says he visited ground zero and said it was a “disaster.”During Tuesday’s ceremony, Trump said he took workers from one of his construction projects to Lower Manhattan “right after” the attacks. He also recalled two firefighters carrying him away from the area because of concerns that One Liberty Plaza, then known as the U.S. Steel Building, could collapse. He has told the story in previous speaking engagements as well.A New York magazine article published after Trump’s remarks on Tuesday claimed to debunk the president’s account, alleging there was a lack of corroboration of his telling of the day, including his participation in cleanup efforts afterward.US SAYS IT DESTROYED FIVE IRANIAN TANKERS AFTER NAVY WARSHIP TARGETED WITH MISSILES“We thought it was coming down on top of us,” Trump said, describing the firefighters as “big strong guys” who grabbed him under his arms and began running with him.The account quickly drew scrutiny. Politifact said it could not verify that Trump directly participated in cleanup efforts or repeatedly visited ground zero in the weeks following the attacks but said video footage from a German news station shows Trump near the area two days after the attacks.