CNN political commentator Bakari Sellers is apologizing after he attempted to quickly connect President Donald J. Trump to the tragic mid-air collision near Ronald Reagan National Airport in Arlington, Virginia, Wednesday night. Following the deadly crash—in which it is feared 64 civilian passengers and crew, along with three military personnel, perished—Sellers posted a screenshot on social media of a Democratic Party press release alleging President Trump froze air traffic controller hirings last week.
“8 days ago,” Sellers wrote on X (formerly Twitter) with the Democratic Party press release screenshotted below. Despite the Democrats’ and Sellers’s claims, the hiring freeze instituted by Trump excludes U.S. military personnel and positions related to immigration enforcement, national security, and public safety. The latter includes air traffic controllers.
Additionally, there is currently no indication that an air traffic controller error caused the collision or that rushed hirings would have changed the events resulting in the deadly crash.
This post from @CNN’s @Bakari_Sellers has been deleted, but here it is.
While first responders were still pulling bodies out of the Potomac River, he decided to recycle some garbage from Dems and somehow score political points.
Depraved. pic.twitter.com/uffHnB2FUg
— Tim Murtaugh (@TimMurtaugh) January 30, 2025
After receiving an avalanche of pushback, Sellers deleted his post and later followed up with a mea culpa. “I deleted the post because timing matters. Politics at this point does not. I f**ked up, I own that,” Sellers wrote on X, continuing: “I am very prayerful but I’m also very frustrated upset and disturbed with where we are as a country. I recognize, and I will do better.”
“The only thing that matters is rescuing the survivors, and ensuring this never happens again,” the CNN commentator concluded.
It was confirmed this morning that there are no survivors.
I deleted the post because timing matters. Politics at this point does not. I fucked up, I own that. I am very prayerful but I’m also very frustrated upset and disturbed with where we are as a country. I recognize, and I will do better.
The only thing that matters is rescuing…
— Bakari Sellers (@Bakari_Sellers) January 30, 2025
CNN has not commented on the matter beyond stating that the corporate news network stands by Sellers’s public apology. The National Pulse has previously reported that CNN has suffered a significant loss of viewership over the last year. This has led to layoffs and the departure of several long-time correspondents and other on-air talent.
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