Trump blames Washington plane crash on diversity hiring

Contributing sentiments towards policy:

61% : Donald Trump is about to hold a news briefing on the air collision at 11am local time (4pm GMT).
56% : Mr Lilley snr. is a former military pilot who helped his son go into the same profession.
56% : "We've already been in contact with Russia," Trump told a news conference.
56% : Military aircraft frequently conduct training flights in and around the congested and heavily-restricted airspace around the nation's capital for familiarisation and continuity of government planning.
51% : Pete Hegseth, the US Defence Secretary, said the Department of Defense was "actively monitoring" the crash.
44% : Asked if Washington would facilitate the return of the remains of Russian nationals, he said: "The answer is yes, we will facilitate."He added that passengers of other nationalities were also on the passenger jet.Donald Trump injected politics into the heart of his crash response briefing, faulting Joe Biden and Barack Obama for allegedly lowering air safety standards and pursuing diversity hires that he claimed made America's skies unsafe.Looking at who could be to blame, he also questioned the role of the helicopter pilots and air traffic control, despite the investigations into the collision just beginning.Donald Trump has condemned the lack of "common sense" that he said allowed the crash to happen.
38% : Donald Trump has pledged to quickly find out what caused the crash between a military helicopter and a passenger jet.
35% : Donald Trump was asked to clarify if he is alleging that diversity hires helped cause last night's crash.
32% : Donald Trump claimed that diversity hires have made America's aviation industry unsafe after a military helicopter collided with a plane near Washington DC's Reagan National Airport.
28% : Donald Trump said Washington has been in contact with Moscow regarding the deaths of Russians in the air crash.
27% : Donald Trump said the collision between the passenger plane and helicopter "should have been prevented" in a ranting post on Truth Social.
24% : Credit: EarthcamAsked about Donald Trump suggesting in an overnight social media post that the collision could have been prevented, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said: "Do I think this was preventable?
22% : Donald Trump said America is in "mourning" as he speaks during a press conference at the White House.
18% : We regret and offer condolences to the families and friends who lost those of our fellow citizens who died in this plane crash," spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said, adding that Vladimir Putin had no intention of getting in touch with Donald Trump about the crash.

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