Donald Trump and Elon Musk stand next to each other at the launch of the SpaceX Starship test flight
(Brandon Bell/Getty)

‘It’s not DEI – it’s him. And Elon too’: Trump, Elon Musk destroyed by a Democratic representative over plane crash lies

President Donald Trump recently condemned DEI hiring practices for the tragic airplane crash that occurred in Washington, DC. Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (AOC) refuted that DEI wasn’t to blame, but the president himself.

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During a press conference, Trump shared the opinion that the air traffic controllers or those hired for the job must be DEI hires. He implied that they were mentally and physically incapable of reaching those standards without DEI. A reporter asked Trump for evidence he has that made him conclude that DEI was at fault for the incident. The president responded, “It just could have been.” He doesn’t cite evidence and even accused former President Joe Biden of removing necessary tests for Federal Aviation Administration applicants.

Needless to say, none of Trump’s claims here are founded. Many were disgusted by his decision to blame-shift during a moment of crisis. Meanwhile, AOC chimed in to rebut the president’s claim at X. She wrote, “Trump gutted the Aviation Safety Committee last week. Air traffic controllers—already understaffed—got Trump’s “buyout” this week with a 1-week ultimatum to decide.” She made it clear that this wasn’t just Trump’s fault. AOC further alleged, “It’s not DEI—it’s him. And Elon too.”

AOC wasn’t crafting a story out of thin air. Two days after Trump returned to the Oval Office, he got rid of the membership of the Aviation Security Advisory Committee. They were in charge of examining safety issues at airlines and airports. Additionally, Elon Musk reportedly pressured the Federal Aviation Administration Chief Mike Whitaker to resign.

The latter agreed, but the position is still vacant up to now. This move from Musk is seen as some form of vendetta against Whitaker, who steeply fined Musk’s SpaceX company due to license requirements. Assigning blame isn’t ideal since the investigation is yet to present findings. However, there is a glaring conflict of interest that’s difficult to ignore.


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Vanessa Esguerra
Vanessa Esguerra (She/They) has been a Contributing Writer for The Mary Sue since 2023. After graduating with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Economy, she (happily) rejected law school in 2021 and has been a full-time content writer since. Vanessa is currently taking her Master's degree in Japanese Studies in hopes of deepening her understanding of the country's media culture in relation to pop culture, women, and queer people like herself. She speaks three languages but still manages to get lost in the subways of Tokyo with her clunky Japanese. Fueled by iced coffee brewed from local cafés in Metro Manila, she also regularly covers anime and video games while queuing for her next match in League of Legends.