On Wednesday night, a passenger airliner carrying 60 passengers and four crew members collided with a military Blackhawk helicopter in mid-air as it was landing at Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. The crash killed everyone on board both aircraft, including 14 U.S. figure skaters.
Now, without citing any evidence, United States President Donald Trump is blaming diversity requirements at the Federal Aviation Administration.
During his press conference on Thursday, Donald Trump blamed Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) hiring practices at the FAA for the crash. Trump cited no evidence and had no examples to back up his claim other than simply saying that the crash “could have been” caused by DEI.
“On DEI and the claims that you have made, are you saying this crash was somehow caused and the result of diversity hiring, and what evidence have you seen to support these claims?” a reporter asked Trump after the president baselessly blamed the crash on DEI.
“It just could have been,” Trump said during his press conference.
Trump went on to claim that his administration used to employ “very powerful tests” that were eliminated by Biden, who he claims went by standards that were “the exact opposite.” Trump did not offer any evidence for these claims or examples of the “powerful tests” that he claims were eliminated by the Biden administration.
Trump was then asked how he could possibly blame DEI for the crash even though even the most basic facts about the midair collision were still being sought by investigators
“Because I have common sense,” Trump said according to the New York Times.
In addition to these comments from Trump, Vice President JD Vance, Secretary of Transportation Sean Duffy, and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth each began their own press conference by praising Trump’s leadership and repeating that they would eliminate diversity requirements without providing any evidence that this crash was a result of DEI.
14 U.S. figure skaters were killed in the plane crash, including six members of The Skating Club of Boston, CEO Doug Zeghibe announced at a press conference on Thursday, Jan. 30.
The victims from The Skating Club of Boston have been identified as two teens, Spencer Lane and Jinna Han, their mothers, Molly Lane and Jin Han, and two coaches, Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov.
Evgenia Shishkova and Vadim Naumov were the 1994 World Champions.
