Vice President JD Vance defended President Donald Trump’s comments regarding diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) hiring practices being related to the horrible plane crash in DC on Wednesday night.
During an interview with Fox News’s “Sunday Morning Futures” with Maria Bartiromo, Vice said that the president was not “blaming anybody” but rather suggesting that the hiring practices are what led to traffic controllers being short-staffed that night when a military helicopter crashed into a commercial airliner carrying passengers.
“The president made very clear that he wasn’t blaming anybody, but he was being very explicit about the fact that DEI policies have led our air traffic controllers to be short-staffed. That is a scandal. Thankfully, it’s a scandal that the president has stopped,” Vance said when Bartiromo asked if there was any proof of the staff working that night being “DEI hires.”
"You've got to have the right people in air traffic control."
Vice President JD Vance supports President Trump's assertion that DEI policies may have contributed to the recent DC air collision. pic.twitter.com/oHyx1Fg9QM
— Mediaite (@Mediaite) February 3, 2025
He continued on to say that it is important to “investigate everything” and then added, “but let’s just say the person at the controls didn’t have enough staffing around him or her because we were turning people away because of DEI reasons.”
“There is a very direct connection between the policies of the last administration and short-staffed air traffic controllers,” he said.