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President Donald Trump issued an extraordinary attack on diversity and inclusion and suggested the hiring policies were to blame for one of the deadliest plane crashes in U.S. history.
The commander-in-chief said the collision that took 67 lives was a 'tragedy of terrible proportions' and said Black Hawk helicopter should have 'seen where they were going'.
The 78-year-old confirmed there were no survivors and reiterated that it was entirely preventable in astonishing remarks criticizing the hiring practices of federal agencies.
He added that he had some 'pretty good ideas' of how the disaster occurred and vowed to make sure it would never happen again.
Trump then said he put 'safety' first while Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden prioritized politics and called former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg a 'disaster' in an extraordinary attack on previous administrations.
'The initiative is part of the FAA diversity and inclusion hiring plan. Think of that. The initiative is part of the FAA diversity and inclusion hiring plan.
'He was a disaster as a Mayor. He ran his city into the ground and he's a disaster now. He's just got a good line of bulls***', Trump said of Buttigieg.
Then he insisted that federal agencies need to be hiring based on intelligence rather than on diversity. He added that Air Traffic Controllers need to be 'geniuses'.
As a reference, he pointed to a report from within the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) that the workforce was 'too white.'
On Wednesday night, American Eagle flight 5342 collided with an Army Black Hawk helicopter on a trainingh flight as it approached the runway at Ronald Reagan National Airport.
There were 60 passengers and four crew aboard the PSA flight out of Wichita, and three members of the military aboard the Black Hawk.
All are believe to have perished after the search and rescue transitioned to a recovery phase.
Divers have been in the frigid waters of the Potomac River overnight tyring to find bodies as investigators tried to piece together what led to the deadliest U.S. air crash since 2019.
President Donald Trump said the nation is in mourning after a 'dark and excruciating night in our nation's history' in his first public address on the commercial airline crash in the United States in 15 years
Trump then said he put 'safety' first while Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden put politics first in an extraordinary attack
Trump came to the briefing room for his first exchange with the press there in his second term. He began by holding a moment of silence for the victims and their families.
It was the seen of numerous tense updates during the coronavirus pandemic during his first.
All 49 seats were occupied in the James Brady Briefing Room well before the start time, and correspondents stood two deep in the narrow aisles.
'It's sardine time,' said one late arrival.
The lights and the bodies made for a warm, intense environment.
Trump's new Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the crash was 'preventable,' and his new Pentagon boss Pete Hegseth said the military crew were engaged in an annual training exercise and had night-vision gear.
Trump's appearance came after Trump issued a pair of online posts about the tragedy.
But he chose to seize control of communications operation.
His new Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth issued a video statement but nixed a planned briefing with the Pentagon press corps.
'I have been fully briefed on the terrible accident which just took place at Reagan National Airport. May God Bless their souls,' Trump wrote on his Truth Social site. 'Thank you for the incredible work being done by our first responders. I am monitoring the situation and will provide more details as they arise.'
That followed an angrier post overnight, when Trump blamed the Blackhawk helicopter involved in the crash as well as air traffic controllers.
The 78-year-old confirmed there were no survivors and reiterated that it was entirely preventable in astonishing remarks criticizing the hiring practices of federal agencies
The Federal Aviation Authority said that the jet, a Bombardier CRJ700, collided with a Sikorsky H-60 Black Hawk helicopter while on approach to Runway 33
Rescue boats search the waters of the Potomac River for survivors after the deadly plane crash
Part of the wreckage is seen as rescue boats search the waters of the Potomac River
Emergency response units assess airplane wreckage in the Potomac River
'The airplane was on a perfect and routine line of approach to the airport. The helicopter was going straight at the airplane for an extended period of time. It is a CLEAR NIGHT, the lights on the plane were blazing, why didn’t the helicopter go up or down, or turn,' Trump wondered online.
'Why didn’t the control tower tell the helicopter what to do instead of asking if they saw the plane. This is a bad situation that looks like it should have been prevented. NOT GOOD!!!'
English (US)