Shortly before 9 p.m. Eastern on January 29, an American Airlines jet carrying 64 passengers and crew collided with a U.S. Army helicopter carrying three military personnel in the airspace over Washington DC. Both aircraft crashed into the Potomac River, and authorities have said there were no survivors.
Officials have not formally released the names of all the victims, pending notification of families. The tragedy has prompted national grief, as the incident marks the most serious air disaster involving a commercial jet in the United States since 2009.
While many Americans continue to grieve, other voices in Washington are scrutinizing the insensitive response from the Trump administration. After upending the stable functionality of the federal government in his first few weeks in office, critics have cited their concerns about Trump’s destructive policy shifts and staffing changes that are already affecting air safety and costing lives.
TRUMP’S INITIAL REACTION
Within an hour of the crash, Donald Trump – a convicted felon and President – posted to his social media network, casting unfounded blame before any official investigation results:
“The airplane was on a perfect and routine line of approach to the airport. The helicopter was going straight at the airplane for an extended period of time. It is a CLEAR NIGHT, the lights on the plane were blazing, why didn’t the helicopter go up or down, or turn. Why didn’t the control tower tell the helicopter what to do instead of asking if they saw the plane. This is a bad situation that looks like it should have been prevented. NOT GOOD!!!”
The president’s statement drew immediate criticism from those who say it exposed his bankrupted ideology, one that minimizes the role of government oversight and removes individual responsibility. Since the early 1900s, federal agencies have established extensive safety regulations for aviation, but observers note the Trump administration has questioned the necessity and authority of many of those vital agencies.
“Trump’s actions in the wake of the disaster were not just reckless, they were monstrous. Instead of showing an ounce of leadership or empathy, he turned a national tragedy into a self-serving spectacle, using the deaths of 67 people as a stage to push his political grievances,” said a former senior FAA official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak publicly. “But worse than his lies was his complete disregard for the victims and their families, his mocking the intelligence of those involved, and his doubling down on his war against government institutions. It wasn’t just incompetence, it was cruelty. It was the behavior of a monster.”
Trump has often referred to the federal government as the “Deep State” to appeal to the conspiracy culture of his followers, repeatedly suggesting it must be dismantled in favor of private-sector management. His twisted views have been implemented, reflected in his frequent criticism and dismissal of officials across various departments since his inauguration.
PURGING FEDERAL AGENCIES
Since taking office on January 20, Trump has replaced or removed numerous federal employees and civil servants, often citing unsubstantiated and mean-spirited accusations of their support for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives. Among those leaving were officials crucial to public safety, including top figures at the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA).
FAA Leadership:
Mike Whitaker, the FAA administrator under President Joe Biden, resigned on Inauguration Day following a dispute with South African tech oligarch Elon Musk. Whitaker had levied fines against Musk’s SpaceX for environmental and safety infractions. Musk complained the FAA’s regulations were “unreasonable and exasperating,” saying they stifled innovation and humanity’s chance to become a multiplanetary species. Soon after Musk endorsed an employee’s criticism of Whitaker, Musk wrote, “He needs to resign.”
Hiring Freeze:
On January 20, Trump imposed a federal hiring freeze, halting the onboarding of new air traffic controllers at a time when the U.S. Department of Transportation says 77% of critical air traffic control facilities are understaffed. Aviation experts warn that the freeze could exacerbate existing stress on the system.
TSA Shake-Up:
On January 21, Trump fired Transportation Security Administration Chief David Pekoske and removed the entire Aviation Security Advisory Committee, a body created by Congress after the 1988 Pan Am 103 bombing.
Those staff changes are recent examples of what critics call Trump’s pattern of hostility toward government oversight. As a result, several senior FAA positions remain vacant, including deputy administrator, associate administrator of airports, associate administrator for security and hazardous materials safety, and multiple assistant administrators.
ADMINISTRATION’S RESPONSE TO THE CRASH
Speaking to reporters on January 30, Trump said, “We do not know what led to this crash but we have some very strong opinions and ideas, and I think we’ll probably state those opinions now.” He went on to claim that those responsible for the incident were not of “superior intelligence.”
The president also accused past Democratic administrations of lowering standards for air traffic controllers, even though the language Trump quoted from the FAA website dates to his own previous first term in office.
“When I left office and Biden took over, he changed them back to lower than ever before. I put safety first. Obama, Biden, and the Democrats put policy first. And they put politics at a level that nobody has ever seen, because this was the lowest level. Their policy was horrible and their politics was even worse.”
Trump singled out Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who actually served under Biden and left office on January 20. He said Buttigieg “is a disaster” and “just got a good line of bullsh*t,” insinuating that Buttigieg mismanaged the Department of Transportation.
He further blamed diversity hiring for the crash. When a reporter asked how he arrived at that conclusion without formal findings, Trump responded, “Because I have common sense, ok? And unfortunately, a lot of people don’t.”
MILITARY REACTION
Pete Hegseth, elevated from a Fox News Channel weekend host to secretary of defense by Trump, also commented: “We will have the best and brightest in every position possible… The era of DEI is gone at the Defense Department.”
AIR TRAFFIC STAFFING SHORTFALL
Shortly after Trump’s remarks, “The New York Times” reporters Sydney Ember and Emily Steel revealed that staffing at Ronald Reagan National Airport, near Washington DC, was “not normal” at the time of the crash. One controller was reportedly handling a workload typically shared by two.
Responding to Trump’s comments, former Transportation Secretary Buttigieg posted on social media:
“Despicable. 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. President Trump now oversees the military and the FAA. One of his first acts was to fire and suspend some of the key personnel who helped keep our skies safe. Time for the President to show actual leadership and explain what he will do to prevent this from happening again.”
EXECUTIVE ORDER BLAMES DEMOCRATS
On January 30, Trump signed an executive order blaming former Presidents Barack Obama and Joe Biden for what he called “problematic and likely illegal decisions” that led to “dangerous ‘diversity equity and inclusion’ tactics” in the FAA. The document falsely claimed those administrations recruited individuals with “severe intellectual” disabilities and promised that Trump’s return to “merit-based recruitment, hiring, and promotion” would restore air safety.
“Trump’s handling of this situation should be treated as one of the biggest scandals in presidential history,” posted “MeidasTouch.”
BROADER ADMINISTRATION SHIFTS
While the crash itself has drawn significant attention, the Trump administration’s larger shake-up of federal agencies has also raised alarms in Washington DC.
OMB Memo and Constitutional Questions:
Ashley Parker of “The Atlantic” reported that the Office of Management and Budget issued a memo freezing all federal grants and loans, sparking a constitutional crisis, without approval from the U.S. Congress. Trump has nominated Russell Vought, a right-wing religious figure who contributed to the conservative policy blueprint Project 2025, to lead the agency though he has not been confirmed yet.
OPM Resignation Offer:
“The Washington Post” reporters Emily Davies, Jeff Stein, and Faiz Siddiqui noted that the Office of Personnel Management, now run by Musk’s corrupt allies, sent a mass email to federal employees with implied threats that they should resign. The email’s title matched the one Musk used after he seized control of Twitter.
Rather than prompting resignations, the offer triggered defiance on social media. One employee wrote on Reddit, “It took me 10 years of applying and 20 years of experience in my field to get here. I will not be pushed out by two billionaire trust fund babies. I’M NOT LEAVING!”
Meta Settlement:
Annie Linskey and Rebecca Ballhaus of “The Wall Street Journal” reported that Meta settled a lawsuit Trump filed after the company suspended him for his role in the January 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Meta agreed to pay $25 million, a move Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) called “a bribe and a signal to every company that corruption is the name of the game.”
Observers say some Trump allies, such as Musk, appear interested in removing regulatory constraints that curb their “futuristic visions,” including space travel and colonization of Mars. Radical Christian nationalists like Vought seek to impose strict religious rule over traditional government functions, while Trump seems focused on consolidating money and power for his own benefit at the expense of struggling Americans.
“This administration’s enthusiasm for breaking things has led to a fairly epic face plant,” wrote Josh Marshall of “Talking Points Memo,” even before Trump moved to deflect his blame for the airline tragedy and redirect it at Democrats.
THE INVESTIGATION CONTINUES
Federal investigators expect to release preliminary findings on the January 29 collision in the coming weeks. The NTSB says its goal is to determine whether staffing shortages or other lapses in oversight may have contributed to the crash.
In the meantime, many questions remain about how a routine approach to a Washington-area airport could end in a catastrophic midair collision, and whether the new administration’s sweeping personnel changes have compromised safety.
As family and friends mourn the 67 people lost, the spotlight turns to Trump to articulate a clear plan for preventing such a disaster from happening again — and to address the broader concerns about the reshaping of federal agencies under his watch. Based on his past and ongoing toxic behavior, experts do not expect any leadership from Trump and only the collateral damage of more broken lives ahead due to his negligence.
© Photo
Mark Schiefelbein (AP), Jose Luis Magana (AP), Alex Brandon (AP), Carolyn Kaster (AP), Taylor Bacon (AP)
