President Donald Trump blamed the previous administration’s DEI policies for the deadly mid-air collision that claimed 67 lives near Reagan National Airport on Wednesday night.
Trump claimed that the Biden administration prioritized hiring based on physical characteristics and sexuality over skills and the best candidate for the job.
GOP lawmakers argued that the FAA rejected qualified candidates for air traffic controller positions because they were white men.
During a press briefing at the White House on Thursday, Trump accused former presidents Joe Biden and Barack Obama of prioritizing politics over safety.
Trump rails against FAA DEI practices: “The FAA’s diversity and inclusion hiring plan says diversity is integral to ensuring safe and efficient travel. A group within the FAA determined the workforce was too White. They actually came out with a directive saying it’s too White.” pic.twitter.com/0QjK8DN6ks
— TheBlaze (@theblaze) January 30, 2025
Trump called out former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, saying he was a “disaster”.
“Do you know how badly everything’s run since he’s run the Dept. of Transportation? He’s a disaster… He’s just got a good line of bullsh*t”, Trump said of Buttigieg.
Trump said Buttigieg ran the FAA “right into the ground with his diversity.”
Trump: “‘The FAA, which is overseen by Secretary Pete Buttigeig’ — a real winner. Do you know how badly everything has run since he’s run the Department of Transportation. He’s a disaster … he’s got a good line of bullshit.” pic.twitter.com/noklq85NeV
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 30, 2025
Trump also read an article quoting the FAA’s job qualifications for air traffic controller candidates.
“The FAA’s diversity push includes focus on hiring people with severe intellectual and psychiatric disabilities — uh, that is amazing,” Trump said.
Trump continued, “FAA says people with severe disabilities are the most underrepresented segment of the work force and they want them in and… they can be air traffic controllers. I don’t think so.”
Trump: “I do want to point out that various articles that appeared prior to my entering office. Here’s one — ‘the FAA’s diversity push includes focus on hiring people with severe intellectual and psychiatric disabilities.’ That is amazing.” pic.twitter.com/pRrmzDtWSu
— Aaron Rupar (@atrupar) January 30, 2025
On his inaugural day in office, Trump issued an executive order terminating hundreds of federal employees involved in diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and dissolving their respective departments.
Trump’s remarks regarding diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) elicited a strong reaction in Washington, D.C., and on social media platforms.
Lawmakers responded with criticism after Trump’s press briefing.
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer expressed his dismay during a Senate floor speech, stating, “I just watched President Trump’s news conference. It’s one thing for internet pundits to spew out unsubstantiated theories, but it’s another for the president of the United States to make idle speculation while bodies are still being recovered.”
Earlier that day, officials confirmed a tragic mid-air collision between American Airlines Flight 5342 and a Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopter at Reagan Washington National Airport in Virginia. Both aircraft plummeted into the Potomac River following the collision.
The passenger jet carried 60 passengers and four crew members, while the helicopter was carrying three Army soldiers conducting night training. Regrettably, all 33 individuals on board lost their lives.
Throughout the night, 30 bodies were recovered from the Potomac River. As a result of the incident, Reagan Washington National Airport resumed flights on Thursday afternoon.
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