NBC Reporter's Claim About Trump ATC Revamp Funding Disproven by Her Own Network

Nicholas Spinnato
November 13th, 2026 10:32 PM

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Friday evening’s news coverage was dominated by the historic FAA ground stop of all nationwide flights amid an air traffic control outage, leading to speculation throughout the night until a press conference by Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy and DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin in the 8 PM hour. 

The press conference had its moment, with Duffy pleading for Congress to fund a revamped Air Traffic Control system, while NBC reporter Monica Alba tried to claim Duffy and the White House did not push for funding a revamped system before Friday's event.

In his own opening statement at the presser, Duffy began his more avid campaigning for a modernized ATC system:

 

 

And I think the question for the American people is, do you want your Congress to fund this? President Trump has asked for the money. He's asked the congress on a bipartisan approach to say, Give us the resources to build a state-of-the-art air traffic control system. Let's not do a patchwork fix to a system that's critical for every single family. It's not red. It's not blue, it's not Democrat. It's not Republican. It's American. Give us the money to fix it. 

He added, “This is a continual problem that we have, and it should be fixed. Um, and so what we want to do, um, I've asked the president has asked for $30 billion. I want $50 billion. “

Duffy then concluded, “Let's get the money. Let's invest so we never have to come at 8:30 at night and have a press conference on why air travel was shut down, why we have tens of thousands of people in airports separated from their families without any knowledge of where they're going to sleep tonight.”

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But still, after Duffy’s urgent plea, NBC White House reporter Monica Alaba insisted he had not done enough before now asking for funding:

But the Trump Administration has been in office for almost two years now, sir. So why hasn't this been a bigger priority for the president? Republicans controlled both chambers of Congress and still do?

Duffy then asked “what network” she worked for, before he noted, “So maybe you haven't covered the 100-plus press conferences that I've done on this issue that have been led by the president. But I know Fox has. Peter [Doocy]’s carried the story. I know many of you have covered the story about the president's ask and my ask to get the money, right?”

Duffy had been pushing for a revamped system for months, setting out a plan for the new system just a month ago at an event.

But still, Alba then interrupted, trying to claim Republicans had both chambers, failing to note they do not have a filibuster-proof majority in the Senate, which makes them unable to pass bills without bipartisan support.

 

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Funnily enough, NBC News’s Special Report, anchored by Hallie Jackson, cut away from the briefing as Alba started to ask her Trump Administration-bashing question.

After correspondent Tom Costello tried to claim there were some discrepancies between Duffy and Mullin, he correctly noted Duffy’s constant push for a revamped ATC system, especially after the 2025 DC mid-air plane collision, which Alba might not have known about:

As to the point about they need more money: He's been pounding the table on that for the better part of two years now. And you're right, it is a Republican Congress that gave him $12 billion. Bipartisan support for the initial $12 billion. But they haven't gotten the rest. He'd been asking for a total of $30 billion. Now tonight they're saying $50 billion. We'll see if they can get it through the Republican Congress before they leave town.

The transcript is below. Click "expand":

CNN’s Anderson Cooper 360

November 13, 2026

8:36:55 PM Eastern

(...)

TRANSPORTATION SEC. SEAN DUFFY: And I think the question for the American people is, do you want your Congress to fund this? President Trump has asked for the money. He's asked the congress on a bipartisan approach to say, Give us the resources to build a state-of-the-art air traffic control system. Let's not do a patchwork fix to a system that's critical for every single family. It's not red. It's not blue, it's not Democrat. It's not Republican. It's American. Give us the money to fix it. Now, if you look to the past administrations going back 25 years, $15 billion has been given to the FAA to fix this air traffic control system. And guess what? Barely anything was done. We had a down payment. President Trump asked for it in the one big, beautiful bill of $12.5 billion.

We are building, in that $12.5 billion, that portion of the build will be done by the time President Trump leaves office. We are moving at a speed that has never been seen before. With regard to the FAA, but that's a partial funding. I think America demands that the Congress give the rest of the resources to finish the bill. And I think the Congress at a point looked to the history of the FAA and said, “We don't trust you.” Well, with President Trump and what we've done, I think they do trust , because what we've done with that first tranche of money. And so with a brand new state-of-the-art system, you won't have these outages. 

So, what you experienced today, but you can think back, many of you covered the story from a year and a half ago. We had outages in Newark, multiple outages in Newark. This is a continual problem that we have, and it should be fixed. Um, and so what we want to do, um, I've asked the president has asked for $30 billion. I want $50 billion. 

And by the way, if you look at how much money Congress mis – Peter, you've covered Congress. They waste a lot of money. What's more important than having an air traffic control system that actually works? And so the president said, you know what? Let's finish this job. New hardware, new software, new telecommunication.

Many of our towers are almost 100 years old. Our air traffic controllers have leaky roofs, air conditioning. That doesn't work. They're high in the air. Their elevators don't work. Their roofs leak. Um, I want new towers. We should also invest in many of the airports around the country that, frankly, many of them are embarrassing. Let's get the money. Let's invest so we never have to come at 8:30 at night and have a press conference on why air travel was shut down, why we have tens of thousands of people in airports separated from their families without, with without any knowledge of where they're going to sleep tonight.

(...)8:56:33 PM Eastern

MONICA ALBA: But the Trump Administration has been in office for almost two years now, sir. So why hasn't this been a bigger priority for the president? Republicans controlled both chambers of Congress and still do?

DUFFY: Where are you from? What network? 

ALBA: I’m with NBC News

DUFFY: NBC. So maybe you haven't covered the 100-plus press conferences that I've done on this issue that have been led by the president. But I know Fox has. Peter’s carried the story. I know many of you have covered the story about the president's ask and my ask to get the money, right?

ALBA: [Inaudible]

DUFFY: And so I identify -  identif. Well, because Congress has to give it to us. 

ALBA: Republicans - [inaudible] - both chambers

DUFFY: Right. Well, oftentimes it's a great point. Oftentimes you need, a bipartisan vote, right? So, I did get partial funding through One Big, Beautiful Bill. I got 12.5 billion. And with that money, we are, we are spending it. and spending it well. But the Congress at the time knew that that was not going to be enough. By the way, this is bipartisan. But on that bill, I didn't have Democrats that voted for it. 

We now have an opportunity in an emergency funding bill before the end of the year to give the money. And I think the question should be from NBC to every member, do you support actually modernizing, making a state-of-the-art air traffic control system – And it's going to take us some time. I can't snap my fingers and build a network overnight – But do you want us to build this for America? And I think every member of Congress should say yes, but every American, I guarantee you would tell those members, yes, give President Trump, give Duffy the money, let them finish this job so we don't have to do a press conference at 8:30 at night ever again.

(...)

NBC News Special Report

8:56:26 PM Eastern

MONICA ALBA: But the Trump Administration has been in office for almost two years now, sir. So why hasn't this been a bigger priority for the president?

HALLIE JACKSON: You have been listening to the Transportation secretary and the Homeland security brief about that nationwide ground. Stop. That, as of right now, has been lifted as of about 30 minutes ago. 

Now, it's going to take some time to unwind. As you heard the transportation secretary say, he suggested that tomorrow there may be better movement. But keep in mind, planes may not be in the right places. Crew members may not be in the right places after planes were essentially paralyzed today, air traffic movement across the country. 

So what exactly happened? You heard from those officials that routers became overloaded with data and started to provide inconsistencies. In other words, intermittent communications via radio, radar, etc. Asked if they could 100 percent rule out a cyber attack, the Homeland Security secretary says it does not appear to have been a hack, but they are not ruling it out. They're still looking. You also heard several times a full-court press for funding from what is currently a Republican-led congress and Tom Costello, as we heard from our White House correspondent, Monica Alba, asking about could this happen again? What would prevent this from happening again? An answer from the transportation secretary that suggested, you know, that is still very much a live ball. Tom?

TOM COSTELLO: There was an inconsistency in answers between these two men, and I want to point it out. Markwayne Mullin, the Homeland Security Secretary, said that they were doing a patchwork upgrading the old technology with new and the new software was incompatible and therefore brought down the system. The new technology, he said, was incompatible. That brought down the system. When Monica tried to press the transportation secretary on that, he would only drill down and focus on the fact that it was an antiquated system that went down. Some inconsistency there we need to get an answer on. Did this happen because they were pushing through some sort of an upgrade, a atchwork to the system already in place. 

As to the point about they need more money: He's been pounding the table on that for the better part of two years now. And you're right, it is a Republican Congress that gave him $12 billion. Bipartisan support for the initial $12 billion. But they haven't gotten the rest. He'd been asking for a total of $30 billion. Now tonight they're saying $50 billion. We'll see if they can get it through the Republican Congress before they leave town. Actually though we would make the point that they allowed the system to open up again at 8:15. It's going to take time through the night maybe well into the weekend before this is finally getting resolved.

(...)

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