In the wake of a tragic accident on the Brooklyn Bridge involving a Mexican Navy tall ship, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) wasted no time pointing fingers—this time at the Trump-era Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). But the U.S. Coast Guard isn’t having it. Officials pushed back hard on Sunday, rejecting Schumer’s claims that the agency’s performance was hindered by bureaucratic changes or staffing issues.
The accident occurred Saturday when the Cuauhtémoc, a ship operated by the Mexican Navy and open to the public for harbor tours, reportedly lost power and veered off course, slamming into the iconic Brooklyn Bridge. In dramatic footage circulating online, the towering vessel can be seen drifting helplessly before impact.
Rather than waiting for an official investigation, Schumer jumped to blame what he referred to as systemic dysfunction caused by DOGE.
“We know that the Trump administration has been meddling in U.S. Coast Guard operations, from staffing to command and comms, and I have the general sense of a DOGE dysfunction in parts of the Coast Guard, to put it mildly,” Schumer stated.
