In his first news conference since the aircraft collision over the Potomac River, President Donald Trump on Thursday implied that diversity, equity and inclusion programs could be the cause, although an investigation has only just begun into the fatal disaster.

In the first national tragedy of his second term in the White House, President Donald Trump wasted no time Thursday baselessly blaming Democrats and diversity initiatives in the federal government for the midair collision that killed 67 people over the Potomac River.

Rescuers were still pulling bodies from the Potomac River as Trump cast blame on the FAA, the Army, diversity programs and his predecessors.

Trump appeared to resume the role of blamer-in-chief in the aftermath of Thursday's fatal plane crash, surveying the tragedy as just another American citizen asking questions, rather than as the leader of a nation dealing with its first commercial air disaster in 15 years.

Trump repeatedly tried to tie diversity hiring practices to the crash during a briefing on Thursday as he also blamed the previous administration. “Are you saying this crash was somehow caused and the result of diversity hiring? And what evidence have you seen to support these claims?” a reporter asked Trump.

The president at points acknowledged that it was too soon to draw conclusions as he encouraged the nation to pray for the victims. But he moved nonetheless to assign blame.

After briefly offering his sympathies to the families of those killed in the crash, and confirming there were no survivors, he pivoted to assigning blame for the tragedy - taking aim at his political

Donald Trump gave a briefing on the Jan. 29 helicopter-airplane crash on Jan. 29, in which a U.S. Army Black Hawk Helicopter collided midair with American Airlines Flight 5342 as it approached Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport.

President Donald Trump gave an eyebrow raising response when asked if he will visit the deadly airplane crash site in Washington, D.C.

A jet carrying 60 passengers and four crew members collided with a US Army helicopter while approaching Ronald Reagan National Airport near Washington, DC Both aircraft fell into the Potomac River, and no one survived.

"What's the site? The water?" Donald Trump said when asked about the crash in the Washington area that left 67 people dead.