Rudolph Giuliani has positioned himself as somewhat of an authority on 9/11. Having served as mayor of New York during the terrorist attacks, the Republican politician has an insight into that Tuesday morning in September of 2001 that no one else in the country can claim. Thus, Giuliani felt it was necessary that he weigh in on Donald Trump's claims to have seen "thousands" celebrating the attacks on rooftops in New Jersey on TV. According to CNN, Trump said, "There were people that were cheering on the other side of New Jersey where you have large Arab populations. They were cheering as the World Trade Center came down. I know it might be not politically correct for you to talk about it, but there were people cheering as that building came down." Trump's claim was supported by candidate Ben Carson, however Carson quickly distanced himself from the position. Further, Fox & Friends host Steve Doocy said he witnessed the same actions in his home of New Jersey. However, the claim has been widely debunked by news outlets and witnesses.

Giuliani estimated that there were about 40 people celebrating the Sept. 11 attacks in Brooklyn and Queens. He told CNN, "We did have some reports of celebrating that day while the towers were coming down." He noted that, had there been the type of widespread celebration Trump was referring to, he "would have known."

Trump has yet to take back his claims. The candidate is adamant that he saw "thousands" and that this notion is confirmed by a Washington Post article which mentions celebrations taking place in New Jersey. The reporter, Serge F. Kovaleski, has since refuted his original claim.

Giuliani also told MSNBC that he saw no such news reports at the time of any celebrations in New York or New Jersey.

 

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