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Just 24 hours after a tragic plane crash in Washington, D.C., the Trump administration sent an email to air traffic controllers urging them to resign and accept mass "buyouts." The message, which was also sent to hundreds of thousands of federal employees, has sparked widespread concern over potential staffing shortages in critical government roles.
The email, sent at 8:30 p.m. on Thursday, came precisely one day after an Army helicopter collided midair with an American Airlines jet as it approached landing at Reagan National Airport, killing 67 people. Preliminary reports suggest that at the time of the crash, only one air traffic controller was performing the duties of two due to existing staff shortages.
"We encourage you to find a job in the private sector as soon as you would like to do so," the email stated, according to The New York Times. The message, sent from the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), described the buyout plan as a means to transition employees out of government roles and into what it called "higher productivity jobs" in the private sector.
"The way to greater American prosperity is encouraging people to move from lower productivity jobs in the public sector to higher productivity jobs in the private sector," the email read.
The message was formatted as a "Frequently Asked Questions" document, appearing to promote the financial benefits of quitting federal employment. It suggested that workers who accepted the buyout could immediately take a second job or use the money to vacation at their "dream destination" while still receiving government pay.
However, the suggestion contradicts long-standing federal regulations that restrict employees from taking on secondary sources of income while still employed by the government.
This latest email follows an earlier communication from the administration, offering federal employees additional incentives to resign, including eight months of pay if they agreed to leave by February 6.
On Friday, Trump addressed his administration’s push to reduce the federal workforce during a press conference. "It’s our dream to have everyone, almost, working in the private sector, not the public sector," he stated.
In the wake of Wednesday’s plane crash, Trump has attempted to deflect blame, pointing fingers at previous administrations and claiming that safety under his leadership is a top priority. "I put safety first. Obama, Biden, and the Democrats put policy first," he asserted.
In a controversial move, Trump also sought to discredit the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), making misleading claims about its hiring process. According to CBS News, Trump falsely stated that the FAA website lists applicants with "hearing, vision, missing extremities, partial paralysis, complete paralysis, epilepsy, severe intellectual disability, psychiatric disability, and dwarfism" as qualified candidates for air traffic controller positions.
His comments were widely seen as an attempt to stoke cultural divisions rather than address the staffing crisis in aviation safety.
Nick Daniels, president of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, responded to the resignation push in an interview with The New York Times. "It is not yet clear how the resignation program would come into effect," Daniels said, adding that union members were "concerned" about the potential loss of experienced aviation safety personnel at a time when air traffic controller shortages are already recognized as a serious issue nationwide.
The Trump administration has not responded to a request for comment from The Daily Beast regarding its handling of the crisis.
The controversy surrounding the administration’s approach to the federal workforce—especially in light of the recent aviation disaster—has raised alarm about the long-term effects of reducing experienced personnel in critical government roles. With growing concerns over the implications of mass resignations, the impact on public safety and national infrastructure remains uncertain.
