WASHINGTON (TNND) — Former Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg spent more than $80 billion on diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives rather than replacing the outdated air traffic control systems, according to Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg’s successor, Sean Duffy.
“Well, I think this is the first time that we’re seeing the media really report on what happened over the course of the last four years under Buttigieg and [former President Joe] Biden,” Duffy told NewsMax.
The agency received DEI-related grants over four years, with the $80 billion awarded being equal to about half of the Transportation Department’s fiscal year budget, according to The New York Post.
Buttgieg approved around 400 grants that were related to DEI. During his term as Transportation Secretary, Buttigieg would blame airlines for problems with flight delays and aircraft.
Duffy told Rob Schmitt Tonight that it was “ dangerous when Pete Buttigieg didn’t take money from Congress and make the critical investments in air traffic control.”
“It’s just not one part of the air traffic control system — it’s the whole thing that needed to be rebuilt, built brand new. And Pete Buttigieg didn’t lift a finger to make that happen.”
According to statistics from the Department of Transportation, most flights that were cancelled during Buttigieg’s term were because of weather, with just 10% of cancellations being due to the nation’s air traffic facilities.
In May, the Trump administration proposed a multibillion-dollar overhaul of the U.S. air traffic control system in the wake of recent deadly plane crashes and technical failures that put a spotlight on the outdated network since the beginning of Trump’s second term.
The proposal called for six new air traffic control centers, along with technology and communications upgrades at all of the nation’s air traffic facilities over the next three years.
“We use radar from the 1970s,” said Duffy, who compared the proposal with upgrading from a flip phone to a smartphone. “This technology is 50 years old, which our controllers use to scan the skies and keep airplanes separated from one another.”
The Trump administration is planning to add fiber, wireless, and satellite technology at more than 4,600 locations, replace 600 radars, and increase the number of airports with systems designed to reduce near misses on runways.
Trump’s recently approved “One Big Beautiful Bill” allocates $12.5 billion to Duffy to begin updating air traffic systems.
Editor’s Note:The Associated Press contributed to this story.
