President Trump Proposes Privatizing Air Traffic Control
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MIAMI (CBSMiami) – President Donald Trump proposed a plan to privatize air traffic control as part of his promise to revamp infrastructure in the United States.
"Today we're proposing to take American air travel into the future finally," said Trump.
President Trump claimed the current system is outdated and the FAA has been trying to update it for years yet consumers remained stuck with the same technology.
"I am proposing new principles to Congress for air traffic control reform," said Trump.
This would include a bidding process for various private companies.
"To one great company who can piece it all together," said Trump.
As part of the plan, air traffic control will be turned over to a self-financing non-profit organization. Trump claimed tax payer money will not be needed.
"Under this new plan the FAA will focus firmly on what it does best - safety," said Trump.
If the reform passes, over time travelers could see improvements in efficiency and lower costs but it may hit airline employees' salaries.
The president's announcement comes as Trump is also reacting to the latest terror attack in London by promising to be more vigilant in stopping more terrorist attacks.
President Trump said he will do whatever it takes to keep America safe. To do that, he says he needs the courts to approve his travel ban on citizens from six Muslim-majority countries.
"I will do what is necessary to prevent this threat from spreading to our shores and work every single day to protect the safety and security of our country," said Trump.
Some Republicans and Democrats are criticizing the president's ban.
"All of the leaders in the intelligence community have said would be a, in effect, a slap in the face to Muslim-Americans and others and in many ways might incite more incidents," said Sen. Mark Warner (D-Virginia).
"The very broad ban that he has proposed is not the right way to go," said Sen. Susan Collins (R-ME).
President Trump is also going after London's Mayor Sadiq Khan who tried to reassure his citizens that the increased police presence after the recent terror attacks is a good thing.
"Londoners will see an increased police presence today and over the course of the next few days. No reason to be alarmed," said Khan.
President Trump mocked the comment on Twitter Sunday. Mayor Khan's office called it an ill-informed tweet that deliberately takes the remarks out of context.
Monday morning, the president doubled down calling it a pathetic excuse by the mayor of London.
White House Senior Adviser Kellyanne Conway said Monday morning that the tiff with London's mayor shows there's a problem with the media saying the press should be focused on terrorism and not what the president tweets.
