The executive order you provided attempts to shift blame for the January 29, 2025, mid-air collision onto hiring and diversity policies implemented under the Obama and Biden administrations. However, cross-referencing this with the infographic you provided suggests a very different sequence of events leading to the crash:
January 20, 2025 – FAA Director Resigns After Pressure from Elon Musk
The infographic demonstrates that the FAA Director resigned due to external political pressure, and former President Trump (presumably in his second term) did not appoint an acting replacement until after the crash.
The executive order does not mention this resignation at all, instead focusing on hiring policies from previous administrations.
January 21, 2025 – Air Traffic Controller Hiring Frozen
The infographic cites a 2023 Department of Transportation Inspector General report that found 77% of critical air traffic control facilities were already short-staffed.
This hiring freeze would have further exacerbated an already dangerous shortage, possibly contributing to the circumstances of the crash.
The executive order does not acknowledge this hiring freeze but instead claims that the problem was caused by hiring policies dating back years rather than recent staffing decisions.
January 28, 2025 – Deferred Resignation or Return-to-Office (RTO) Demand Sent to FAA Employees
The infographic attributes FAA staffing shortages to repeated near-shutdowns of the government due to House Republican budget fights and failure to fully fund critical government functions.
It also states that funding to maintain these programs was only secured because more Democrats than Republicans voted to prevent government shutdowns.
The executive order makes no mention of budget cuts, government shutdowns, or FAA understaffing—factors that were critical to aviation safety.
January 29, 2025 – First American Mid-Air Collision in 16 Years
The infographic presents a clear sequence of events leading up to the crash, linking it to FAA understaffing, hiring freezes, and budgetary issues, rather than hiring policies dating back over a decade.
The executive order, on the other hand, attempts to place blame on diversity and inclusion initiatives without addressing the direct policy decisions leading up to the crash, such as the hiring freeze or lack of leadership appointments.
Key Takeaways:
The executive order distorts the actual sequence of events leading to the crash, omitting any mention of the FAA director's resignation, hiring freezes, or staffing shortages exacerbated by political decisions in early 2025.
The blame-shifting to DEI policies lacks direct causation, as the biggest concerns leading to the accident appear to be understaffing and regulatory instability.
The real problem seems to be recent political interference, failure to appoint leadership, and FAA staffing shortages, not decade-old hiring policies.
This appears to be an opportunistic attempt to exploit the tragedy to push for regressive policies under the guise of "merit-based hiring," while ignoring the direct causes of the crash.