WASHINGTON – It was the type of moment when Americans traditionally look to a leader for comfort: grieving the loss of 67 people killed when a commercial airliner and a military helicopter collided over the skies of Washington.
And when Donald Trump stepped behind the White House briefing room podium on Thursday to fulfill his role as consoler-in-chief, he started his remarks by asking for a moment of silence in honor of the victims and their families.
But soon after the silent reflection had ended, Trump went on the attack, blaming the tragedy on his two Democratic predecessors and their emphasis on diversity in hiring, which he claimed had lowered standards for air traffic controllers.
Trump did not provide evidence to back up his statements. When a reporter pressed him on how he could point to diversity, equity and inclusion hiring practices as the reason for the crash, he shot back: “Because I have common sense.”
Binding the nation’s wounds in times of tragedy
Americans have often turned to their leaders in times of tragedy, hoping they can help bind the nation’s wounds and somehow make sense out of events that are often senseless.
Ronald Reagan lauded the heroism of the doomed astronauts aboard the Space Shuttle Challenger, who were killed when the aircraft exploded shortly after takeoff in 1986. “We will never forget them,” he said during a televised address from the Oval Office, recalling how they prepared for their journey and “slipped the surly bonds of earth to touch the face of God.”
