Donald Trump used a press conference on the Washington DC plane crash that killed 67 people to attack diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies, despite no evidence linking them to the disaster. The president claimed that DEI initiatives at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) 'could have been' a cause, and that Democrats were responsible for declining standards in air traffic control.
Trump was supported by Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, who said 'we can only accept the best and the brightest', and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, who declared 'the era of DEI is gone at the defence department'. Vice-President JD Vance also claimed without evidence that hundreds had been turned away from air traffic control jobs 'because of the colour of their skin'.
Trump falsely asserted that 'very powerful tests' for air traffic controllers were terminated under Joe Biden, and that his own administration had 'a much higher standard'. When pressed on how he could quickly blame diversity, Trump replied: 'Because I have common sense.' He also mused about possible errors by the helicopter pilot.
Officials reported that 28 bodies had been retrieved from the Potomac River by late Thursday morning. Trump opened the briefing with a moment of silence and offered condolences, but soon diverted to attacks on DEI, quoting a Fox News report about hiring people with 'severe intellectual and psychiatric disabilities'. He said such individuals should not be air traffic controllers.
Since returning to office, Trump has made dismantling DEI in federal government a central focus. The crash involved an American Airlines jet and a US military helicopter at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. An investigation by the FAA, NTSB and military is under way.
