♪ ♪
>> Tucker: THE FAA HAS FOR
DECADES BEEN ONE OF THE MOST
TRUSTED INSTITUTIONS AND
GOVERNMENT AND FOR GOOD REASON.
COMMERCIAL AIR TRAVEL HAS BEEN
THE SAFEST IN THE WORLD IN PART
BECAUSE OF THE FAA'S HIGH
STANDARDS.
BUT UNDER THE OBAMA
ADMINISTRATION THAT BEGAN TO
CHANGE RADICALLY WITHOUT ANYBODY
PAYING ATTENTION.
THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION
PRESSURED THE FAA TO MEET
ABSTRACT DIVERSITY GOALS.
NOBODY BOTHERED TO EXPLAIN WHY
DIVERSITY IS A RELEVANT
CRITERION FOR AIR TRAFFIC
CONTROLLERS.
NO ONE WILL EXPLAIN IT NOW.
WE CALLED THE FAA TODAY AND WE
GOT SILENCE WHEN WE ASK THAT
QUESTION, WHICH IS THE MOST
BASIC QUESTION.
BUT IT DIDN'T MATTER.
STARTING IN 2014 THEY ADDED A
BIOGRAPHICAL QUESTIONNAIRE TO
THE APPLICATION PROCESS.
APPLICANTS WITH A LOWER APTITUDE
IN SCIENCE GOT PREFERENCE OVER
APPLICANTS WHO HAD SCORED
EXCELLENT IN SCIENCE.
APPLICANTS WHO HAD BEEN
UNEMPLOYED FOR THE PREVIOUS
THREE YEARS GOT MORE POINTS AND
LICENSED PILOT SCOTT.
IN OTHER WORDS, THE FAA ACTIVELY
SEARCHED FOR UNQUALIFIED AIR
TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS.
THAT IS INSANE AND THEY KNEW IT
WAS INSANE WHEN THEY DID IT BUT
THEY DID IT ANYWAY.
TODAY WE OBTAINED NEW
INFORMATION, AND INTERNAL EMAIL
WRITTEN BY AN EXECUTIVE AT THE
FIRM THAT DEVISED THE
QUESTIONNAIRE.
IN THAT EMAIL THE EXECUTIVE
ADMITS THAT THE TEST HE DEVISED
HAS NOTHING TO DO WITH FINDING
THE BEST AIR TRAFFIC
CONTROLLERS.
IF YOU WANT GOOD AIR TRAFFIC
CONTROLLERS, FIND PEOPLE WITH
EXPERIENCE, THAT WAS HIS ADVICE.
THE FAA IGNORED THIS AND USED
THE BIOGRAPHICAL SCREEN ANYWAY.
THEY DIDN'T CARE ABOUT FINDING
THE BEST AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS
THE BEST AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER
CONTROLLERS.
COMPARED TO DIVERSITY, YOUR
SAFETY MEANT NOTHING TO THEM.
WE REACHED OUT TO GREG MARTIN,
THE FAA'S TOP SPOKESMAN.
WE WANTED TO KNOW WHY THE FAA
WOULD EVER USE TOTALLY
IRRELEVANT CRITERIA SUCH AS WHAT
PEOPLE LOOK LIKE IN ORDER TO
HIRE FOR A JOB AS VITAL AS AIR
TRAFFIC CONTROL.
WE COULDN'T GET AN ANSWER.
WE ALSO ASKED THE ACTING FAA
ADMINISTRATOR DANIEL EWELL TO
COME ON THIS SHOW AND EXPLAIN
EXACTLY WHAT WAS GOING ON AND
WHY HE WAS TOO COWARDLY TO
APPEAR.
THE PREVIOUS ADMINISTRATION
MICHAEL WHERE TO, THE ONE WHO
ORIGINALLY SIGNED OFF ON THE
POLICY.
HE'S ALSO A COWARD.
BUT WE ARE GOING TO KEEP PUSHING
UNTIL WE GET AN ANSWER.
IN THE MEANTIME WE ARE JOINED BY
FORMER AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLER
MICHAEL PEARSON, WHO IS ALSO A
LAWYER AND IS SUING THE FAA OVER
ALL OF THIS.
WELCOME BACK TO THE SHOW.
>> THANKS FOR HAVING ME ON.
>> Tucker: I WANT TO BE
CERTAIN I DIDN'T MISSTATE THAT.
THE BIOGRAPHICAL SCREEN, DEVISED
UNDER THE OBAMA ADMINISTRATION
FOR THE REASONS I EXPLAINED WAS
CREATED BY A COMPANY THAT
ADMITTED THAT IT WAS NOT THE
RIGHT WAY TO FIND THE MOST
TALENTED AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS
BUT THE FAA KEPT IT IN ANY WAY,
IS THAT CORRECT?
>> THAT'S CORRECT.
YOU DIDN'T MISSTATE IT.
YOU UNDERSTATED WHAT OCCURRED.
TO PUT THIS STORY IN A NUTSHELL,
IN LATE 2011, EARLY 2012,
MEMBERS OF THE NATIONAL BLACK
CONTROLLERS ASSOCIATION HAD A
MEETING WITH THE RAINBOW PUSH
COALITION, JESSE JACKSON AND
SOME HIGH-LEVEL OFFICIALS, PART
OF THOSE MEETINGS BY THE WAY.
RIGHT AFTER THAT MEETING THEY
PUT AN IMMEDIATE HOLD ON HIRING.
THEY STOPPED HIRING.
THEY HAVE USED IT EXCUSES LIKE
SEQUESTERING, BUT THAT'S NOT
REALLY WHAT HAPPENED.
BASICALLY THEY SHUT DOWN THE
PROCESS EVEN THOUGH THE NATION
NEEDED AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS.
LOTS WERE RETIRING.
THE SYSTEM WAS NEEDING NEW
TRAINEES TO GO THROUGH THE
SYSTEM BECAUSE IT TAKES TIME TO
GET THROUGH, BUT THEY DID THAT
CONSCIOUSLY.
THEN, THE PURGE OF THE 2600 OR
MORE QUALIFIED CTI STUDENTS IN
GRADUATE PROGRAMS ACROSS THE
COUNTRY INCLUDING A
TRADITIONALLY BLACK AND
DISADVANTAGED COLLEGES WERE
WIPED OFF A LIST AND BY THE WAY,
THAT LIST, THE 2600 FOLKS
INCLUDED A LARGE PERCENTAGE OF
FEMALE AND MINORITY APPLICANTS
WHO WOULD HAVE BEEN FANTASTIC
AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS.
>> Tucker: PEOPLE WHO WERE
GOING TO SCHOOL FOR IT BASICALLY
GOING TO SCHOOL FOR IT BASICALL
BASICALLY.
>> PRIOR MILITARY EXPERIENCE IN
THE AREA, PILOTS, SOME OF THESE
INDIVIDUALS WERE MORE QUALIFIED
CERTAINLY THAN I WAS WHEN I
STARTED.
THEN AFTER THAT THEY DESIGNED A
TEST TO HER SPEAKING ABOUT, IF
BIOGRAPHICAL ASSESSMENT,
BIOGRAPHICAL QUESTIONNAIRE.
THIS ONE IS CALLED A
BIOGRAPHICAL ASSESSMENT THAT WAS
MADE FOR A DIFFERENT PURPOSE AS
YOU STATED.
IT WASN'T SUPPOSED TO BE USED
THE WAY IT WAS ACTUALLY THE
CREATOR ACTUALLY NOTIFIED THEM
OF THAT.
IN EFFECT THAT TEST PUNISHED
PEOPLE WITH AVIATION KNOWLEDGE,
ANY AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL
EXPERIENCE, ANY AVIATION
EXPERIENCE, ANY SCIENCE
EXPERIENCE AND THEN THEY CAME
OUT AND THEY ACTUALLY HAD ONE
INDIVIDUAL, PUBLIC RELATIONS OF
THE SOUTHWEST REGION PUBLISH
THAT IT WAS FOR DIVERSITY.
THAT WAS PULLED BACK IMMEDIATELY
AND THEY STATED IT WAS FOR THE
BEST AND BRIGHTEST CANDIDATES.
>> Tucker: THIS IS SO ROTTEN
AND CORRUPT.
I DON'T THINK ANYBODY WANTS TO
LIVE IN A COUNTRY WHERE YOU
CAN'T TRUST AIR TRAFFIC CONTROL
BECAUSE THEY ARE SO DOGMATICALLY
IDEOLOGICAL THAT THEY ARE
INTENTIONALLY SEEKING THE WORST
CANDIDATES.
IT'S INSANE.
VERY QUICKLY, WHAT ABOUT ALL THE
UNIONS AND ALL THE PILOTS
GROUPS, PRIVATE COMMERCIAL
PILOTS GROUPS.
WHAT ABOUT ALL THE PEOPLE IN
AVIATION WORLD WHO KNEW THIS WAS
GOING ON, WHY DID NOBODY SAY
ANYTHING ABOUT IT?
>> I THINK CERTAIN GROUPS TO TRY
TO SAY SOMETHING BUT QUITE
FRANKLY THERE WASN'T ENOUGH
PRESS COVERAGE ON IT AND BECAUSE
OF OTHER POLITICAL REASONS IT
DIDN'T COME TO THE FOREFRONT.
THE BIGGER QUESTION IS AFTER THE
STUDENTS WERE PURGED, THE FAA
LITERALLY KNEW THAT THERE WERE
INDIVIDUALS ENGAGED IN CHEATING
TO PASS THE NEW BIOGRAPHICAL
ASSESSMENT, SO THEY WIPED THE
STUDENTS OFF THE LIST, THEY
ALLOWED A GROUP TO THEN ENGAGE
IN INTENTIONAL TREATING, GAVE
BASICALLY THE SUBGROUP, THE
BLACK COALITION OF AVIATION
EMPLOYEES, THE ANSWERS TO THE
TEST.
THAT'S AS BIG A STORY AS
ANYTHING ELSE.
>> Tucker: UNFORTUNATELY WE
ARE OUT OF TIME BUT THIS WILL
NOT BE THE LAST TIME WE ADDRESS
THIS.
THIS IS A THREAT TO THE COUNTRY,
IT'S TOTALLY WRONG AND IT CAN
ONLY HAPPEN IN SECRECY AND WE