After President Trump called Pete Buttigie up during a press conference following the tragic air accident at Reagan National Airport on January 29 and the tragic death of 67 people, it was obvious that the original transportation secretary would answer.
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” The FAA, which was overseen by Secretary Pete Buttigieg—a true success. This kid’s a genuine success”, Trump said, heavy with sarcasm. ” Do you know how hard things work since he’s run this Department of Transportation? He’s a crisis. He was a crisis as a president. He ran his capital into the earth, and he’s a crisis. Now, he’s only got a nice collection of bulls—t”.
Trump continued,” The Department of Transportation, his state agency, charged with regulating legal aircraft, also, he runs it, 45, 000 people, and he’s run it straight into the ground with his diversity”.
President Trump on previous Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg:” A true success. Do you know how terribly everyone has run since he’s run the Department of Transportation. He’s a catastrophe… he’s only got a nice line of bullshit”. photograph. twitter.com/TTYrtmFRRU— CSPAN ( @cspan ) January 30, 2025
Buttigieg responded in a blog on X with a renewed focus on the effects of diversity activities and La plans and their effects on aviation safety.
” Despicable. As people grieve, Trump may be leading, no lying. We prioritized health, conducted near calls, increased Air Traffic Control, and screened all of our aircraft’s millions of flights for fatalities.
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This, of training, isn’t entirely correct. An Aug. 2023 research by the New York Times exposed a shocking surge in nearby incidents at U. S. flights, raising serious health problems.
” But far]in 2023], near calls involving commercial flights have been happening, on average, several times a week”, the Times reported after analyzing inside FAA information. In July 2023 only, there were a remarkable 46 near-misses involving commercial aviation.
Even Buttigieg himself acknowledged in 2023 that nearby calls and near-collisions were “out of control.”
Pete Buttigieg acknowledged in March 2023 that nearby names and near collisions were out of power.
Because there were many more incidents in 2023 and 2024, and sadly the collapse last day, it appears they didn’t do much to resolve the issue. photograph. twitter.com/jOsx8I9eDp
— MAZE ( @mazemoore ) January 31, 2025
A June 2023 Inspector General review even slammed Buttigieg’s FAA for serious staffing shortages and lack of planning. There was no guarantee that enough air traffic controllers would get trained in time to maintain activities, and 77 % of critical infrastructure had understaffed staff, the FAA had no plan to fix the problem, and there was no way to prevent this.
Associated: So This is What the Army Isn’t Telling Us About the Reagan Air Crash
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The Biden administration’s mistaken hiring practices, which valued variety, led to thousands of highly qualified light applicants being denied jobs, a distinct entrance of a widespread problem, which was also made clear by the FAA itself when it acknowledged that manpower levels were” not standard for the time of day and the volume of traffic.”
Phil Washington, Joe Biden’s first choice to lead the FAA, was also a flagrant DEI hire. During his confirmation hearings, it was revealed that Washington didn’t know anything about aviation, and couldn’t answer basic questions about standards or safety. He eventually had to withdraw his nomination, but guess who defended him? That’s right, Pete Buttigieg.
The FAA needs a confirmed Administrator, and Phil Washington’s transportation &, military experience made him an excellent nominee. Although the partisan attacks and procedural obstructions he has encountered are undeserved, I respect his decision to resign and am grateful for his service.
— Secretary Pete Buttigieg ( @SecretaryPete ) March 26, 2023
While Buttigieg had nothing but praise for a man who had no business leading the FAA ( and, thankfully, didn’t ) Buttigieg went on to blame Trump for Wednesday’s fatal midair collision.
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For our VIPs:  , Everyone Knew DEI Would Cause a Crash
” President Trump now controls the FAA and the military. One of his first acts was to fire and suspend some of the key personnel who helped keep our skies safe”, Buttigieg’s post continued. The President should demonstrate real leadership and explain what he will do to stop this from occurring again.
The Trump administration’s claim that he fired key aviation safety officials has been disproven. While it’s very much on brand for a Democrat to peddle disinformation, it’s beyond irresponsible to do so.
Buttigieg ought to seriously think about stopping. Trump didn’t just throw random accusations, he’s addressing genuine concerns about the failures of the FAA—a department that went to hell on Buttigieg’s watch.
