By: Don Driggers

In a surprising turn, Senator Chuck Schumer (D-NY) implied Sunday that cost-cutting measures imposed by the Trump administration may have contributed to the deadly crash of a Mexican navy training ship into the Brooklyn Bridge, The New York Post reported.

According to the Post, Schumer raised concerns that budget reductions enacted under former President Donald Trump — particularly those affecting the U.S. Coast Guard — may have played a role in the tragic collision. The incident claimed the lives of two Mexican naval cadets and injured 17 others after the vessel reportedly lost its steering and slammed into the iconic bridge.

“There’s been interference by the Trump administration in how the Coast Guard is staffed,” Schumer said in a press statement cited by the Post. “We need a full investigation into how that may have influenced last night’s events — whether in command, communications, or local coordination.”

The Post noted that Schumer specifically pointed to a possible breakdown in the Coast Guard’s Vessel Traffic Service (VTS), a maritime equivalent to air traffic control, which may have been impacted by a federal hiring freeze. Schumer suggested that if the VTS system wasn’t operating at full capacity, the crash could be a “national harbinger” that demands urgent action.

Still, the Coast Guard maintains it responded rapidly and appropriately. In a statement Sunday, also reported by the Post, officials said personnel from Coast Guard Station New York arrived quickly after being alerted. “A safety zone was established between the Brooklyn and Manhattan bridges,” the release said. “New York Vessel Traffic Services also suspended commercial traffic in the area.”

Sources confirmed to the Post that the ship involved — the ARM Cuauhtémoc, a tall sailing vessel operated by the Mexican Navy — suffered a mechanical malfunction that disabled its steering. With no ability to navigate, the ship was caught in strong East River currents and dragged into the bridge.

Despite Schumer’s statements, no evidence has emerged to suggest that any other vessels or traffic mismanagement contributed to the crash, the Post emphasized. Mechanical failure remains the primary suspected cause.

The Post also highlighted that recent cost-cutting measures by the Department of Government Efficiency — an agency created under President Trump and headed by tech billionaire Elon Musk — included trimming Coast Guard budgets. Among the cuts was the termination of the Logistics Information Management System, a $32 million program meant to oversee maintenance, configuration, and supply chains. While officials said the system was deemed ineffective, there is no official word that its removal directly impaired Coast Guard operations.

The Post noted that Schumer’s comments come at a politically difficult time for the Senate Majority Leader. He’s been fending off criticism for supporting Trump’s budget initiatives and for dodging questions surrounding President Biden’s mental fitness during his final year in office.

This incident has now become a flashpoint in the debate over federal agency funding and preparedness, with Schumer using it to reignite scrutiny over the Trump-era approach to government efficiency — even as federal officials continue to stress that the crash was likely the result of a mechanical failure aboard the ship, not administrative shortcomings.