President Trump Blames DEI for American Airlines Crash, Citing His Own 'Common Sense' and Scolding CNN's Kaitlan Collins

• President Donald Trump addressed reporters during a briefing on the deadly midair collision between an American Airlines jet and U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter over the Potomac River

• Trump claimed that DEI initiatives and other hiring policies were, in part, to blame for Wednesday's accident

• When asked by CNN's Kaitlan Collins if it was too soon to blame these policies without evidence, Trump responded by saying, "That's not a very smart question"

President Donald Trump addressed reporters during a live briefing on Thursday, Jan. 30, regarding the deadly American Airlines collision with a U.S. Army Black Hawk helicopter over Washington, D.C.

On the evening of Jan. 29, AA Flight 5342 collided with a Black Hawk helicopter over the Potomac River as the passenger flight approached Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport. The crash, which involved three soldiers on the helicopter and 64 people on the airplane, is believed to be the most deadly aircraft incident since 2001.

During the press conference, Trump, 78, called the accident "a real tragedy" and "a tragedy of terrible proportions. He then made claims that the government's diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) policies and the mental health of employees were to blame before eventually getting into a heated exchange with reporters in the room during a Q&A.

Addressing CNN's Kaitlan Collins, Trump accused her of not asking a "smart question."

"We don't know the names of the 67 people who were killed, and you are blaming Democrats and DEI and air traffic control and seemingly the member of the U.S. military who was flying that Black Hawk helicopter," Collins said, before asking, "Don't you think you're getting ahead of the investigation right now?"

Trump responded, "No, I don't think so at all. I don't think the names of the people, you mean the names of the people that are on the plane? Uh, you think that's going to make a difference? I think that's not a very smart question. I'm surprised, coming from you."

Related: American Airlines Plane Crashes into Potomac River After Black Hawk Helicopter Collision: Live Updates

When asked by another reporter if it was too early to blame DEI initiatives, air traffic controllers or even the helicopter pilots — which Trump asserted several times throughout his briefing — for the accident, the president fired back by saying, "I have common sense."

He continued by claiming, "One of the other things I will tell you is that the systems were built, I was going to rebuilt the entire system. And then we had an election that didn't turn out the way it should have been. They didn't build the system properly. They spent a lot of money renovating a system, spending much more money than they would've spent if they bought a new system for air traffic controllers, meaning computerized systems."

"Air traffic controllers, they have to be at the highest level of genius," he said.

Before answering questions from reporters in the room, Trump spoke out against initiatives implemented during former President Joe Biden's administration, including the Federal Aviation Administration's current policies on hiring practices.

"FAA's diversity push includes focus on hiring people with severe intellectual and psychiatric disabilities," the president said. "And then it says, FAA says people with severe disabilities are most underrepresented segment of the workforce. And they want 'em in and they want them, they can be air traffic controllers. I don't think so."

He then said that the "FAA is actively recruiting workers who suffer severe intellectual disabilities, psychiatric problems and other mental and physical conditions under a diversity and inclusion hiring initiatives spelled out on the agency's website."

He then went on to say that "you need a very special talent and a very special genius to be able to [do the job of an air traffic controller]" and that the FAA's diversity and inclusion hiring did not ensure safe and efficient travel. "I don't think so. I don't think so," he said.

NBC News’ Peter Alexander followed up later by pointing out to Trump that his claim the policy “stems from efforts that began under President Biden or the transportation secretary Pete Buttigieg, is demonstrably false.”

Explaining that it had been on the FAA website since 2013, Alexander continued, “It was there for the entirety of your administration, too. So my question is, why didn’t you change the policy during your first administration?”

Trump responded by insisting he did change the policy before it was changed back by Biden. Later, the president said that Alexander asked “totally irrelevant and not very good questions.”

Related: 'Several Members' of U.S. Figure Skating Team Onboard American Airlines Plane That Crashed Over Washington, D.C.

The president first addressed the incident just after midnight on Jan. 30 in a post to Truth Social. As many have, he expressed his confusion as to how such a crash could occur.

"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," Trump wrote in the post.

He added, "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!!!"

Minutes later, he added, "What a terrible night this has been. God bless you all!"

Shortly after 8 a.m. local time, Trump shared another update on the crash, revealing that he had "been fully briefed on the terrible accident." He added, "May God Bless their souls. Thank you for the incredible work being done by our first responders. I am monitoring the situation and will provide more details as they arise."

Related: American Airlines Flight Carrying 60 Passengers and 4 Crew Split in Half After Helicopter Collision: Report

Since then, Pete Hegseth, the new secretary of defense, said that the military helicopter involved in the accident was on an annual proficiency training flight, manned by a "fairly experienced crew" who had access to night vision goggles.

Conditions on Wednesday evening were reported as being clear, and officials are working to rule out other variables, such as if the helicopter was "in the corridor and at the right altitude" at the time of the crash, according to Hegseth, who added, "It's a tragedy."

The American Airlines flight, arriving from Wichita, Kan., reportedly split in half upon impact from the helicopter, according to NBC4. In a conversation with PEOPLE, an Army helicopter pilot said, "It is way too soon to tell exactly what happened, but this looks like a couple things went wrong.”

The pilot added, "The tower asked the Black Hawk if they had the plane in sight, and the Black Hawk probably thought they did, but were looking at the wrong airplane.” He explained, “It's tough to see at night, even for a pilot. You can miss things.”

They then highlighted the importance of the Traffic Alert and Collision Avoidance System. “It's a system that helps prevent mid-air collisions. It uses radio signals and radar to monitor aircraft, and it sends warnings to aircraft if they're in danger of a collision,” the pilot added. “It works very well. But it has to be turned on. Did one or both aircraft forget to turn it on?”

The pilot then reiterated that it’s “really too soon to know.”

Following the accident, Kansas Sen. Jerry Moran expressed his sorrow for those who were traveling from Wichita, "located in the heart of our nation," and added he received confirmation that no one survived the crash.

"This is a sad day for Kansas and our nation as we awaken this morning to this tragic news ... There will be much to learn, and to do in the coming days in the wake of this tragedy," Moran said.

Read the original article on People