Exclusive: NTSB fought to retain employees after Trump’s federal worker resignation offer
CNN
In the wake of the worst American air disaster in two decades, the understaffed and cash-strapped National Transportation Safety Board was scrambling to keep investigators from leaving after federal employees received an offer by the Trump administration to resign and be paid through September.
In the wake of the worst American air disaster in two decades, the understaffed and cash-strapped National Transportation Safety Board was scrambling to keep investigators from leaving after federal employees received an offer by the Trump administration to resign and be paid through September. An internal NTSB memo informed employees Friday that they would not be eligible for the program. NTSB, an independent and apolitical agency that does not report to the executive branch, investigates transportation accidents, provides aid to those affected by them and recommends safety measures. Multiple sources confirmed to CNN that all 400 of its staffers received the email titled “Fork in the Road” — effectively offering a buyout from the federal government. That message, dated 9:41 p.m. ET Tuesday, went out barely 23 hours before an American Airlines regional jet operated by PSA Airlines and a US Army Blackhawk helicopter collided in a tremendous fireball, plunging all 67 on board the two aircraft into the icy Potomac River below. There were no survivors. The disaster apparently left top brass at the agency scrambling behind the scenes to find a way to exempt employees from the Trump administration’s offer. Friday, the head of the NTSB sent a message to any employee who agreed to administration’s initial message to “rescind their deferred resignation letter immediately” with the Office of Personnel Management. One source said the initial message came as a shock to staffers, including highly specialized investigators, many of whom are nearing retirement. “It’s not like we have an easy time finding people,” the source said.
National Guard troops deployed to Washington, DC, can remain there for now, after a federal appeals court on Thursday temporarily froze a judge’s ruling that would have soon required them to leave the city’s streets.
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President Donald Trump has hired a new architect for the White House ballroom amid disputes between the president and his architect originally contracted to complete the project, several sources have told CNN.
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Authorities in Colombia are dealing with increasingly sophisticated criminals, who use advanced tech to produce and conceal the drugs they hope to export around the world. But police and the military are fighting back, using AI to flag suspicious passengers, cargo and mail - alongside more conventional air and sea patrols. CNN’s Isa Soares gets an inside look at Bogotá’s war on drugs.
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As lawmakers demand answers over reports that the US military carried out a follow-up strike that killed survivors during an attacked on an alleged drug boat in the Caribbean, a career Navy SEAL who has spent most of his 30 years of military experience in special operations will be responsible for providing them.
The murder trial of Brian Walshe, who is accused of killing and dismembering his wife in 2023 continues. Follow for live updates.
The FBI arrested a person Thursday who investigators believe planted pipe bombs near the Republican and Democratic National Committee headquarters the night before the 2021 US Capitol riot.
Lawyers for the New York attorney general’s office are expected to appear in federal court in Albany on Thursday to try to disqualify a US attorney from investigating the state’s civil case against President Donald Trump.
A new poll shows more than 70% of Republicans with Obamacare coverage don’t want their enhanced premium subsidies to expire.