(Note: This is the second article dealing with conflicts of interest. Click here for part 1. )
The Emir of Qatar is giving the US President an airplane, for free. A $400 million gift. Really?
And Trump wants to use it as Air Force One, even though Boeing is currently building two new planes for this purpose. Huh?
So, what does “free” mean in this instance? Even if there’s no acquisition cost, it will still cost over $1 billion to refurbish this airplane. And that’s assuming it’s even possible to make this old plane a secure enough platform for the head of the US government to operate in. It would essentially have to be disassembled and put back together.
Minority Leader, Senator Chuck Schumer, calls this “The largest bribe from a foreign government in American history”, according to multiple news sources. The Emoluments Clause in the Constitution prohibits gifts to any federal officials over $480 without Congressional approval. However, a gift can be made to the United States government.
One wonders if Trump realizes that the retrofitting of this “free” airplane will most likely take until he’s out of office, (by 2029, according to an NBC New article) the same time the two new Air Force One planes are expected to be delivered. The real question is whether the public and congress will realize this. Based on this timetable the “free” plane will never see service as Air Force One, since it’s destined to be delivered to Trump’s presidential library after his term is over. Of course, all of the expensive and complex technology that took so long to install would have to be removed first, at taxpayers’ expense.
So, to recap: The administration (or the Defense Department) is accepting a 13 year old 747 as a gift from the Qatari government to use as Air Force One. But that plane would need to be retrofitted, a process costing $1 billion and taking 3+ years. That means Trump wouldn’t be able to use that “free” plane for more than a few months before he leaves office. At that point, the plane would be given to the Trump presidential library, effectively making him the owner. Hmm.
“But Trump has repeatedly described the potential deal as a ‘gesture’ or ‘contribution’ from Qatar’s royal family. A ‘GIFT, FREE OF CHARGE,’ he wrote on … Truth Social. He said it would be a temporary replacement for Air Force One and given to his presidential library after he leaves office but denied he would fly in the plane then.”, according to CNN
Trump claimed he would be “stupid” not to accept this gift. How stupid does he think the public is to believe that story? Really.