Trump Mourns Air Crash Victims, Claims DEI Policies May Have Played a Role
President Donald Trump delivered remarks Thursday stating that the victims who died in the recent mid-air collision outside Ronald Reagan National Airport are in the "warm embrace of a loving God."
"In moments like this, the differences between Americans fade to nothing compared to the bonds of affection and loyalty that unite us all both as Americans and even as nations," Trump said in a press briefing at the White House, The Christian Post reports. "We are one family, and today, we are all heartbroken."
Americans can "take solace in the knowledge that their journey ended not in the cold waters of the Potomac but in the warm embrace of a loving God," he asserted.
Trump also asked God to "watch over those who have lost their lives and bring comfort to the loved ones." He concluded by declaring, "God bless everyone in this room."
On Wednesday, a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter crashed into an American Eagle passenger jet outside the airport in Arlington, Virginia, across the Potomac River from the nation's capital.
All passengers aboard both aircraft, including the three U.S. Armed Forces personnel on the helicopter and the 60 passengers and four crew members on the passenger airliner, are dead.
While the cause of the crash remains under investigation, Trump claimed that the Biden Administration's policies related to Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) may have been a factor and that he signed an executive order last week condemning such policies.
Citing a Fox News article, the president highlighted The Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) "diversity push includes a focus on hiring people with 'severe intellectual' and 'psychiatric' disabilities" since they are considered "the most underrepresented segment of the workforce."
"The FAA [was] actively recruiting workers who suffer severe intellectual disabilities, psychiatric problems, and other mental and physical conditions under a diversity and inclusion hiring initiative spelled out on the agency's website," Trump said.
He added that individuals with handicaps, including deficient hearing and vision as well as "missing extremities, partial paralysis, complete paralysis, epilepsy, severe intellectual disability, psychiatric disability, and dwarfism," are all eligible to work as air traffic controllers.
Pushing back on the FAA's Diversity and Inclusion Plan, stating, "Diversity is integral to achieving FAA's mission of safe and efficient travel," Trump stressed the importance of merit and intelligence in selecting air traffic controllers.
While the pilot of the plane was "doing everything right" by "using the same track as everybody else" when attempting to land the passenger aircraft, Trump questioned why the helicopter was at "the same height" as and "going at an angle that was unbelievably bad."
"It was a very clear night," he said, noting the passenger aircraft had all of the necessary lights on.
Photo Credit: ©Getty Images/Chip Somodevilla/Staff
Originally published January 31, 2025.
