Trump blames AT&T for call glitches with faith leaders, signals switch to another carrier

U.S. President Donald Trump on Monday publicly criticized AT&T for technical issues that disrupted a national conference call with faith leaders, urging the company’s leadership to address the situation and suggesting his administration may turn to a different carrier in future communications.

Posting on his social media platform during the call, Trump said, “I'm doing a major Conference Call with Faith Leaders from all over the Country, and AT&T is totally unable to make their equipment work properly.” He added, “This is the second time it's happened. If the Boss of AT&T, whoever that may be, could get involved — It would be good. There are tens of thousands of people on the line!”

The president later apologized to the faith leaders for the disruption, noting the possibility of rescheduling and switching to another provider.

“We may have to reschedule the call, but we'll use another carrier the next time,” Trump said.

AT&T acknowledged the issue, posting on X (formerly Twitter) that it had reached out to The White House and was working to “understand and assess the situation.” The company provided no further comment on the cause or extent of the disruption.

AT&T shares briefly dipped following Trump’s remarks but quickly recovered. The company has previously drawn the president’s ire. During his first term, Trump frequently criticized AT&T over its ownership of CNN, a network he accused of biased coverage.

The latest clash comes as Trump expands his presence in the telecom space. Earlier this month, the Trump Organization announced the launch of 'Trump Mobile,' a branded U.S. mobile service and $499 smartphone, in a licensing deal arranged by the president’s children.

The call with faith leaders was intended as part of Trump’s ongoing outreach to religious communities ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. It remains unclear whether the disrupted call will be rescheduled.

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