Donald Trump stood at the White House podium on 6 April 2026 and implied, for at least the third time on record, that he deserves credit for the death of Osama bin Laden — a man killed by US Navy SEALs on the orders of President Barack Obama in May 2011.
The remarks came during a press conference about the rescue of two American airmen shot down over Iran, during which Trump listed what he described as his personal foreign policy achievements. Transitioning from his account of ordering the 2020 killing of Iranian General Qasem Soleimani, Trump said: 'I did one other, but this one was not picked up: Osama bin Laden.' He then pointed to his year 2000 book, 'The America We Deserve,' claiming it called for bin Laden to be 'taken out' before the 11 September 2001 attacks. The book does not say that.
