Politicians on both sides of the aisle have been playing the blame game after a Norfolk Southern train derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, earlier this month.
The train was carrying toxic chemicals that were released into the air and may have been released into the Ohio River, from which tens of millions of Americans draw their water.
The Biden administration, including Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, has attempted to blame former President Donald Trump for the derailment, saying that he advocated for deregulating transportation. The head of the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) has called their attacks ‘misinformation.’
Buttigieg blames Trump, Rubio amidst East Palestine derailment backlash: 'Now that it's campaign season' https://t.co/EYD7WRlT0f
— Fox News (@FoxNews) February 24, 2023
“You take down regulations, you water down regulations, you weaken the power of the administration to deal with freight railroad companies, and then you show up wanting to be a great friend of the people who have been impacted by a rail disaster,” Buttigieg said.
Deputy White House Press Secretary Andrew Bates also blamed the Trump administration, saying that he and Republican legislators ‘sold out’ members of East Palestine to rail lobbyists.
Trump and Republicans “Owe East Palestine an apology for selling them out to rail industry lobbyists” and contended that Republican members of Congress “laid the groundwork for the Trump administration to tear up requirements for more effective train brakes.” He said.
BREAKING: The Biden White House slams Trump and Republicans for laying the "groundwork" that resulted in the East Palestine train derailment by shredding regulations — says they “owe East Palestine an apology for selling them out to rail industry lobbyists." RT IF YOU AGREE!
— Occupy Democrats (@OccupyDemocrats) February 22, 2023
The talking point originated from a rule that would have required some trains to upgrade their braking systems, which Democrats claim would have prevented the tragedy in East Palestine.
Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg, who visited East Palestine a day after President Trump, said that the Biden administration has been “constrained” on rail safety because of a “braking rule withdrawn by the Trump administration in 2018 because of a law passed by Congress in 2015.”
NTSB Chair Jennifer Homendy debunked the Biden administrations talking points last week, saying that the braking rule that the Trump administration shot down would have only applied to high hazard flammable trains, where the vehicle derailed in East Palestine was a ‘mixed freight train.’
The ECP braking rule would’ve applied ONLY to HIGH HAZARD FLAMMABLE TRAINS. The train that derailed in East Palestine was a MIXED FREIGHT TRAIN containing only 3 placarded Class 3 flammable liquids cars. pic.twitter.com/ReAFDSdsn7
— Jennifer Homendy (@JenniferHomendy) February 17, 2023
She added that the train would not have had ECP brakes “even if the rule had gone into effect.”
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Homendy took it a step further and criticized people who have attempted to do armchair ‘analysis’ of the accident, saying that their efforts have been ‘harmful’ and have ‘added pain’ to members of the East Palestine community who are still reeling from the incident.
I urge you: let the NTSB lead the #safety analysis. Anything else is harmful — and adding pain to a community that’s been through enough.
— Jennifer Homendy (@JenniferHomendy) February 17, 2023
Some Democrats have used even harsher language than Buttigieg or members of the Biden administration, leading to backlash on social media.
‘The View’ Co-Host Joy Behar implied that residents of East Palestine deserved what happened to them because they overwhelmingly voted for President Trump in 2016 and 2020.
“I don’t know why they would ever vote for him,” Behar said. “For somebody, who, by the way, he placed someone with deep ties to the chemical industry in charge of the EPA’s Chemical Safety Office.” Behar looked directly at the camera, pointed, and added, “That’s who you voted for in that district. Donald Trump, who reduces all safety. He did.”
Joy Behar implies that the people of East Palestine voted for Trump, so they got what they deserve.
The psychotic contempt of idiotic elites for Trump *voters* has corroded brains and souls
pic.twitter.com/X0Z363nemT— Buck Sexton (@BuckSexton) February 23, 2023
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