'Please tell us!' CNN's Tapper puts Sean Duffy on the spot over Trump plane crash claims

CNN's Jake Tapper pressed Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy for evidence Sunday that Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) initiatives were responsible for last week's mid-air collision over Washington, D.C., that claimed 67 lives.

At a press conference after an American Eagle Flight from Wichita, Kansas, collided mid-air with an Army Black Hawk helicopter, Wednesday night, Trump said that DEI hiring practices "could have been" the cause of the tragedy.

"We have to have our smartest people" as air traffic controllers, Trump said. "It doesn’t matter what they look like, how they speak, who they are. ... They have to be talented, naturally talented. Geniuses. Can’t have regular people doing their job. We can’t have regular people doing this job. They won’t be able to do it, but we’ll restore faith in American air travel."

Tapper asked Duffy, "Is there any specific evidence that backs up Donald Trump's claims, President Trump's claims that DEI or FAA hiring practices are responsible in any way for this tragedy at Reagan National?"

"So, Jake, 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? That they're driven by safety, and DEI doesn't matter?" Duffy said.

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He continued, "I do know that in the last administration, they were focused on not safety, but they were focused on changing the name from 'cockpit' to 'flight deck'...They focused on EVs and sustainability and racist roads, things that don't matter in regard to safety. Our mission since the start has been safety, and they've lost that mission. And we see when you don't focus on safety and you focus on social justice or the environment, bad things happen."

Tapper tried again to get some evidence.

"The head of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association says that all air traffic controllers are subject to rigorous training and that, quote, 'The standards to achieve certification have nothing to do with race or gender or anything else,'" Tapper said. "So, it sounds like you're saying that there isn't any evidence right now that affected the accident because it's so early -- you'll let us know if there is any. But 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."

"Under the Obama administration, they they did change the recruitment standards and brought more people in, but less people were certified," Duffy said. "That caused a shortage in the system, but also they lowered -- this is the Obama or the Biden administration -- they lowered the entrance exam scores to get people into air traffic control. We only have so many slots in the academy. I want to get the best people into the academy that can pass the test, get into towers and not wash out."

Watch the clip below via CNN or at the link..