Trump says Democrats put 'policy first' ahead of airline safety

2 months ago 43

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President Trump on Thursday blamed diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives and Democrats for the deadly plane crash in Washington, saying unqualified individuals were put into critical aviation safety positions.

Mr. Trump said the “horrible” policies of Presidents Biden and Obama played a role when an Army helicopter collided with an American Airlines jet near Reagan National Airport.

“We must have only the highest standards for those who work in our aviation system,” Mr. Trump said in his first second-term appearance in the White House press briefing room.

He said he brought the standards up when he took office for the first time in 2016, but President Biden “changed them back to lower than ever before.”

“I put safety first. Obama, Biden and the Democrats put policy first and they put politics at a level that nobody’s ever seen because this was the lowest level.”

When reporters asked what evidence he had to connect the crash to DEI initiatives, the president said it was “common sense.”

“It just could have been. We had a much higher standard than anybody else and there are things where you have to go by brain power,” he said.

Mr. Trump said his first administration used “very powerful tests” to determine they were hiring what deemed to be the best people, but those tests were eliminated by the Biden administration. Mr. Trump did not say which tests he was referring to.

When asked if blaming the crash on DEI was getting ahead of the investigation, Mr. Trump said, “I don’t think so.”

The president mentioned his recent executive order for the Federal Aviation Administration to end any hiring based on DEI standards, instead using merit-based hiring.

He said it restored “the highest standards of air traffic controllers” and that his administration would “set the highest possible bar for aviation safety.”

“We have to have our smartest people,” the president said. “It doesn’t matter what they look like, how they speak, who they are, what matters is intellect, talent.”

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