'I have common sense': Donald Trump blames diversity hiring under Democrats for plane crash that killed 67 people

President Donald Trump suggested, without any evidence, that the deadly midair collision of two aircraft in Washington was the result of the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) efforts to hire a more diverse workforce.

Trump made this accusation during a White House press conference called to update Americans on the Wednesday night crash, in which a passenger jet about to land at Reagan National Airport collided with an Army helicopter on a training flight.

The cause of the air crash is not yet clear, and there is no evidence that efforts to make the federal workforce more diverse have compromised air safety. Yet Trump used the briefing to criticize the FAA, which regulates commercial US air travel, claiming that the agency's "diversity push" included a focus on hiring people with "severe intellectual and psychiatric disabilities" to be air traffic controllers.

When asked how he could blame diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) hiring for the crash without knowing who was at fault, Trump said, "because I have common sense." He added that "air traffic controllers have to be at the highest level of genius."

Trump's comments drew criticism from aviation safety experts, disability rights advocates and Democratic lawmakers. A former FAA official told Reuters that air traffic controllers undergo rigorous testing - both mentally and physically - before they are hired.

Later on Thursday, Trump issued an executive memorandum directing his administration to assess and undo diversity initiatives in aviation safety roles. This comes after he signed an order last week calling for the elimination of government diversity programs, including the ending of all federal offices and jobs related to DEI.

Advocates of DEI programs and initiatives say they are necessary to address longstanding inequities and structural racism affecting marginalized communities. However, the National Transportation Safety Board Chair Jennifer Homendy stated that the investigation will focus on the "human, the machine and the environment," and that they will look at the facts.

The FAA did not respond to a request for comment on Trump's claims. The crash was the deadliest US air disaster in more than 20 years, with no survivors among the 64 people on the jet and three soldiers on the helicopter.