During his address at the UN General Assembly on Tuesday, President Donald Trump lightheartedly remarked about a teleprompter malfunction. As he approached the podium, he joked about needing to speak "from the heart" due to the technical issue. He also recounted a mishap involving an escalator earlier that day with First Lady Melania Trump. "I don’t mind making the speech without a teleprompter, because the teleprompter is not working," he told the audience of world leaders in New York. "I feel very happy to be up here with you nevertheless — and that way you speak more from the heart. I can only say that whoever is operating this teleprompter is in big trouble." This elicited laughter from the crowd.

Despite the teleprompter issue, Trump continued his nearly hour-long speech using notes. He addressed the topic of wars, claiming, "I ended seven wars…It’s too bad I had to do these things instead of the United Nations doing them," criticizing the UN for not intervening.

Trump also shared a humorous anecdote about his earlier experience at UN headquarters. "All I got from the UN was an escalator that on the way up, stopped right in the middle. If the First Lady wasn’t in great shape, she would have fallen, but she’s in great shape. We’re both in good shape. We both stood. And then a teleprompter that didn’t work. These are the two things that I got from the United Nations: a bad escalator and a bad teleprompter," he said.

A video shared online shows the couple entering the building and approaching the escalator. After Trump gestures for Melania to go first, the escalator unexpectedly stops. Melania begins walking up the stalled escalator, followed by Trump. "And by the way, it’s working now," he added about the teleprompter as he resumed his speech. "It just went on."

Following his address, Trump is scheduled to participate in various meetings throughout the day in New York before returning to the White House on Tuesday night.