Trump criticizes Biden administration, DEI policies after aircraft collision

WASHINGTON-- US President Donald Trump on Thursday lashed out at former President Joe Biden and the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) policies after an American Airlines regional jet collided Wednesday night with an Army helicopter while landing at the Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport just across the river from Washington, D.C.

At a press conference, Trump also suggested that people with "severe intellectual disabilities" had been hired as air traffic controllers under the Obama and Biden administrations, attempting to blame his Democratic predecessors for the tragedy.

When asked whether there is evidence to support his claim that this crash was the result of diversity hiring, Trump did not provide any evidence, and said he has "common sense".

The president told reporters that "it just could have been" due to DEI policies, adding that he wants "the brightest, the smartest, the sharpest" for air traffic controllers.

After Trump's inauguration on Jan 20, he quickly repealed Biden administration's DEI policies, saying that he will end the government policy of "trying to socially engineer race and gender into every aspect of public and private life," and "forge a society that is colorblind and merit based."

In an executive order on aviation safety signed on Jan 21, Trump said the Federal Aviation Administration betrayed its mission by "elevating dangerous discrimination over excellence," arguing that "illegal and discriminatory diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) hiring, including on the basis of race, sex, disability, or any other criteria other than the safety of airline passengers and overall job excellence, competency, and qualification, harms all Americans."

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer immediately reacted to the president's remarks. "It's one thing for internet pundits to spew up conspiracy theories. It's another for the President of the United States of America to throw out idle speculation even as victims are still being recovered, and families are still being notified. It turns your stomach," he said.

An investigation into the accident is underway, led by the US National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB).