Overview
- During Trump's Sept. 23 visit for the UN General Assembly, his teleprompter initially failed and an escalator stopped as he and the First Lady stepped on.
- UN spokesman Stéphane Dujarric said the teleprompter used for Trump's address was brought and operated by the White House.
- A UN review found the escalator halted after a safety mechanism at the top was activated, possibly by a US‑delegation cameraman moving backward while filming.
- White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said the episodes look like deliberate sabotage and stated the Secret Service will investigate.
- Leavitt cited a Sunday Times report about UN staff joking about shutting off escalators and also complained the speech volume was too low, while no concrete evidence has been presented by the White House.