Schumer knocks Trump 'idle speculation' on DC plane crash: 'It just turns your stomach'

Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) condemned President Trump’s claims that the deadly aircraft collision near Reagan National Airport was caused by diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts.

“Listen, it’s one thing for internet pundits to spew off conspiracies, it’s another for the President of the United States to throw out idle speculation as bodies are still being recovered and families are still being notified. It just turns your stomach,” Schumer said in a Thursday statement.

“In the meantime, we are keeping the families and loved ones of the victims in our prayers. And we are keeping our brave first responders in our prayers as well,” he added. 

President Trump alleged that air traffic controllers were in part responsible for the crash, further blaming the Federal Aviation Administration’s (FAA) DEI hiring policies for contributing to the accident. 

The president claimed the “FAA diversity push includes focus on hiring people with severe intellectual and psychiatric disabilities. That is amazing, and then it says FAA says people with severe disabilities are most underrepresented segment of the workforce, and they want them in, and they want them. They can be air traffic controllers. I don't think so,” he told reporters from the briefing room.

He noted that “brilliant people” have to be in those positions, slamming former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg for lax policies.

“As families grieve, Trump should be leading, not lying. We put safety first, drove down close calls, grew Air Traffic Control, and had zero commercial airline crash fatalities out of millions of flights on our watch,” Buttigieg wrote in a statement on X. 

“Time for the President to show actual leadership and explain what he will do to prevent this from happening again.”

Other leaders including Maryland’s former Gov. Martin O’Malley (D) have also condemned Trump’s statements urging him to wait until a full investigation has been completed before commenting on who’s at fault for the incident. 

“Even in this moment, Donald Trump can’t resist promoting racist tropes about D.E.I. that divide our nation and threaten to wreck our Republic and our reputation around the world,” O’Malley stated.

”Now is a time for unity. Shame on the President. The American people deserve better than this.”