Jake Tapper Grills Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy About Trump’s Claim DEI Could Have Caused DC Plane Crash: If There’s Evidence ‘Please Tell Us’
CNN’s Jake Tapper confronted Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy about President Donald Trump’s claim that DEI hiring practices in the FAA could be, in part, to blame for the deadly plane crash in Washington on Wednesday.
In an interview on CNN’s State of the Union Sunday, Tapper asked Duffy to produce evidence to support the president’s claims.
“Is there any specific evidence that backs up Donald Trump’s claims?” Tapper said “President Trump’s claims that DEI or FAA hiring practices are responsible in any way for this tragedy at Reagan National?”
Duffy dodged the question.
“I think the better question is, am I going to guarantee the American people that only the best and the brightest serve in this incredibly important body of the Department of Transportation?” Duffy replied. “That they’re driven by safety, and DEI doesn’t matter?”
After Duffy launched into an attack on the previous administration, Tapper followed up.
“You alluded to this earlier that the idea of the DEI expanded the number of people trying to get into the air traffic control training, not necessarily those who graduated,” Tapper said. “The head of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association says that all air traffic controllers are subject to rigorous training and that, ‘the standards to achieve certification have nothing to do with race or gender or anything else.’ So it sounds like you’re saying that there isn’t any evidence right now that this affected the accident, because it’s so early. You’ll let us know if there is any. But I don’t I just don’t know of any evidence. And if there is some, please tell us that DEI had anything to do with the tragedy itself.”
“What I’m talking about is the mission of safety,” Duffy replied. “And on your airplanes, Jake, or your air traffic controllers or anyone that works at CNN or anywhere else, they do want the best and the brightest. They will not sacrifice that. You can have DEI in water coolers and universities. I disagree with that. But lives aren’t impacted at with DEI at universities. It is impacted here.”
Watch above, via CNN.
