News/Commentary

Flailing Schumer tries to blame DOGE for Mexican ship’s Brooklyn Bridge collision

May 19, 2025 | | Print Article

The instinct to blame President Donald Trump found a New York Democrat facing a brutal fact check over the Mexican Navy’s deadly encounter with the Brooklyn Bridge.

Saturday, tragedy unfolded in New York City’s East River as the Mexican Navy training vessel ARM Cuauhtémoc collided with the Brooklyn Bridge after departing the South Street Seaport for Iceland. As reports indicated, at least two cadets died and nearly 20 were injured out of a crew of close to 300. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) saw fit to fault Trump and his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) for the incident.

Taking to X, Schumer’s posturing made the incident a matter of politics as he wrote, “With the Brooklyn Bridge strike last night: I’m fighting for answers about whether Trump and DOGE have impacted water traffic control.”

“We know they’ve been meddling with U.S. Coast Guard staffing. Trump relieved Admiral Linda Fagan as Commandant of the USCG, and that position is still vacant. And the hiring freeze has limited the ability for the USCG to staff up the Vehicle Traffic Service,” he alleged, “that’s their traffic control operation that acts like Air Traffic Control but on water. We need action for our national security, infrastructure protection, and public safety.”

In addition to the post on X, Schumer ramped up the fearmongering in a press release issued by the Senate Democrats in which he pointed out, “A failure or attack on a major bridge could disrupt supply chains, endanger lives, and cause massive economic losses,” as the release warned, “the Brooklyn Bridge vessel strike could be a national harbinger that demands immediate attention.”

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Aside from the fact that no such warnings of doom had been hurled at then-President Joe Biden’s administration when the Dali crashed into Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge in March 2024 as the military failed to reach recruitment quotas — and Schumer instead called for “bipartisan cooperation” to resolve the massive disruption resulting from the tragedy — the Department of Homeland Security was prepared to call the senator out for statements deemed “FALSE.”

Captioning his post on X, DHS wrote, “Minority Leader Schumer’s accusations that a hiring freeze led to the U.S. Coast Guard’s Vessel Traffic Services not being adequately staffed are FALSE. The US Coast Guard has been fully supported and has been exempt from hiring freezes.”

“Additionally,” the post continued, “this incident had nothing to do with Vessel Traffic Services — when a ship loses propulsion in a high current area, the vessel needs to engage all capabilities to stop, and ideally, tugs are nearby to support. We encourage Minority Leader Schumer to get his facts straight before he misleads the American people.”

The Coast Guard’s statement on the allision detailed that it “immediately responded, launching a crew from Station New York and establishing a temporary safety zone. We are grateful for the timely, diligent efforts by our federal, state, and local partners in coordinating that initial response.”

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Having previously earned the ire of comedian Jon Stewart over messaging, Schumer once again found himself getting ratioed on social media for his “first and only response to tragedy,” appearing to be saying, “How do I blame my enemies?”

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Kevin Haggerty
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