Trump seeking ways to take over 9/11 memorial in NYC
[September 06, 2025]
By PHILIP MARCELO
NEW YORK (AP) — President Donald Trump’s administration said Friday that
it is exploring whether the federal government can take control of the
9/11 memorial and museum in New York City.
The site in lower Manhattan, where the World Trade Center's twin towers
were destroyed by hijacked jetliners on Sept. 11, 2001, features two
memorial pools ringed by waterfalls and parapets with the names of the
dead, and an underground museum. Since opening to the public in 2014,
the memorial plaza and museum have been run by a public charity, now
chaired by former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, a frequent
Trump critic.
The White House confirmed the administration has had “preliminary
exploratory discussions” about the idea, but declined to elaborate. The
office noted the Republican pledged during his campaign last year to
make the site a national monument, protected and maintained by the
federal government.
But officials at the National September 11 Memorial & Museum say the
federal government, under current laws, can't unilaterally take over the
site, which is located on land owned by the Port Authority of New York
and New Jersey.
The U.S. government shouldering costs and management of the site also
“makes no sense,” given Trump's efforts to dramatically pare back the
federal bureaucracy, said Beth Hillman, the organization’s president and
CEO.
“We’re proud that our exhibitions tell stories of bravery and patriotism
and are confident that our current operating model has served the public
honorably and effectively,” she said, noting the organization has raised
$750 million in private funds and welcomed some 90 million visitors
since its opening.
Last year, the museum generated more than $93 million in revenue and
spent roughly $84 million on operating costs, leaving a nearly $9
million surplus when depreciation is factored in, according to museum
officials and its most recently available tax filings.
New York Gov. Kathy Hochul, meanwhile, voiced her own concerns about a
federal takeover, citing the Trump administration's recent efforts to
influence how American history is told through its national monuments
and museums, including the Smithsonian.
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Hagi Abucar places flowers for his former coworker Lindsey Herkness
on the south reflecting pool during the 9/11 Memorial ceremony on
the 23rd anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks, Sept. 11, 2024,
in New York. (AP Photo/Yuki Iwamura, File)
The takeover idea also comes just months after the Trump
administration briefly cut, but then restored, staffing at a federal
program that provides health benefits to people with illnesses that
might be linked to toxic dust from the destroyed World Trade Center.
“The 9/11 Memorial belongs to New Yorkers — the families, survivors,
and first responders who have carried this legacy for more than two
decades and ensured we never forget,” Hochul said in a statement.
“Before he meddles with this sacred site, the President should start
by honoring survivors and supporting the families of victims.”
Anthoula Katsimatides, a museum board member who lost her brother,
John, in the attack, said she didn’t see any reason to change
ownership.
“They do an incredible job telling the story of that day without
sugarcoating it,” she said. “It’s being run so well, I don’t see why
there has to be a change. I don’t see what benefit there would be.”
The memorial and museum, however, have also been the target of
criticism over the years from some members of the large community of
9/11 victims' families, some of whom have criticized ticket prices
or called for changes in the makeup of the museum's exhibits.
Trump spokespersons declined to respond to the comments.
In all, nearly 3,000 people were killed when the hijackers crashed
jetliners into the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and a field in
southwest Pennsylvania during the Sept. 11 attacks. More than 2,700
of those victims perished in the fiery collapse of the trade
center’s twin towers.
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