Hours after the Washington plane crash, the president’s desire to politicise tragedy was breathtaking in its audacity

• Washington DC plane crash – latest updates

After the Challenger space shuttle disaster, Ronald Reagan ended an Oval Office address with the consoling thought that its crew had slipped the surly bonds of earth to touch the face of God. Successors such as Bill Clinton, Barack Obama and Joe Biden also shone in the crucial US presidential role of consoler-in-chief.

How would Donald Trump fare in his first test since returning to the White House? On Thursday he came to the press briefing room just 14 hours after the collision of a passenger plane and army helicopter near a Washington airport apparently left all 67 people dead.

Karoline Leavitt’s debut press briefing was standing room only – and she was slick, pugnacious and fiercely loyal to her boss

“Clear a path!” shouted the big shots of TV news as they tried to squeeze their way through reporters packed like sardines into the White House briefing room to get to their front-row seats. Tempers frayed, foreheads perspired and necks strained similar to those of passengers itching to get off a plane.

The first press briefing of a new administration is always a standing-room-only event. This time, it was the second Donald Trump administration and the debut of Karoline Leavitt, who pointed out that she is the youngest person to serve as White House press secretary. The 27-year-old beats the record of Ronald Ziegler, who was 29 when he was Richard Nixon’s spokesperson.