Well, that escalated quickly.
While it is not surprising that many have not exactly embraced the $400M “flying palace” presented to President Trump from the Qatari royal family, it is somewhat surprising that some of the most pro-MAGA Trump allies are openly calling for the president to reject the offer.
According to a report from the Daily Mail, the White House claims that it is not in violation of any laws by accepting the Boeing 747 jet from Qatar, which has been converted into a gold-encrusted aerial “palace” of sorts.
The purpose of the plane is to apparently serve as a form of Air Force One while the other Air Force One planes receive long overdue upgrades.
As Trump declared, “they’re giving us a gift.”
Qatar has been instrumental in the Middle East peace talks in Doha, but its reputation is far from sterling.
Previously, Qatar had made a $1M “donation” to the Clinton Foundation, ostensibly for Bill Clinton’s birthday.
Tellingly, Hillary Clinton was serving as Secretary of State at the time.
Even more tellingly, Trump blasted Clinton at the time for accepting the gift, accurately pointing out that Qatari royals tend to openly fund terrorists hostile to American interests.
In fact, Qatar fell out with Saudi Arabia several years ago over its suspect support of militant groups, and Trump just signed a “historic” defense agreement with the Saudis.
That said, even Saudi Arabia has a spotty record in terms of civil liberties, which is precisely why more than one MAGA ally is a bit miffed by Trump’s current collaborations with Middle Eastern kings.
Including long-term MAGA ally Ben Shapiro.
“Qatar is not allegedly giving President Trump a $400 million jet out of the goodness of their sweet little hearts, no matter what special envoy Steve Witkoff says … They try to stuff money in pockets in totally bipartisan fashion. Qatar will court anyone it thinks will have power, Republican or Democrat,” Shapiro asserted.
Fair point.
After all, Qatar has given oodles of money to all kinds of leaders worldwide, without much ideology in mind. Though the nation sure is interested in procuring whatever influence is possible.
“It’s an equal opportunity influencer – as long as you can help whitewash their image or smooth over the fact that they are in fact the world’s largest proponents of terrorism on an international scale,” Shapiro added.
Another fair point. Which is especially problematic when considering all the other relevant details.
“Taking sacks of goodies from people who support Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood, al-Jazeera, all the rest – that’s not America First … Is this good for President Trump? Is it good for his agenda? Is it good for draining the swamp and getting things done? The answer is no, it isn’t. It isn’t. If you want President Trump to succeed, this kind of ‘skeezy’ stuff needs to stop,” Shapiro declared.
A $400M “flying palace” is fairly blatant, though what is even more concerning are the potential security risks.
Indeed, Air Force One reportedly must undergo extensive checks to ensure that all security measures are as strong as possible in order to assure the greatest protection of the United States.
Which is precisely why Shapiro is urging the Trump administration to rethink the gift from Qatar.
“Taking jets from Qatar is not the way. Taking real estate deals from Qatar is not the way. The largest obstacle to any administration is scandal … Scandal-plagued administrations have a really tough time gathering the political capital necessary to actually effectuate their agenda, and that’s why it’s unbelievably important that the Trump administration avoid scandal. That is the reason I am worried about this stuff,’” Shapiro asserted.
Particularly when considering the optics of the entire situation.
“[If] we switched the names to Hunter Biden and Joe Biden, we’d all be freaking out on the right,” Shapiro deftly pointed out.
Shapiro does have a point … especially as Trump himself has previously blasted the Clinton family for its canoodling with Qatar.
“Saudi Arabia giving $25 million, Qatar, all of these countries. You talk about women and women’s rights? So these are people that push gays off business – off buildings. These are people that kill women and treat women horribly. And yet you take their money,” Trump declared in 2016.
Not only that, but Qatar has also provided a bit too much refuge to the top (billionaire) dogs in Hamas.
The Daily Mail noted that Qatar has been “a key financial supporter of the Palestinian militant organization Hamas.”
Another MAGA ally has also expressed disappointment about the Trump administration’s response to the gift.
“I love President Trump. I would take a bullet for him. But, I have to call a spade a spade. We cannot accept a $400 million ‘gift’ from jihadists in suits … The Qataris fund the same Iranian proxies in Hamas and Hezbollah who have murdered US Service Members. The same proxies that have worked with the Mexican cartels to get jihadists across our border. This is really going to be such a stain on the admin if this is true. And I say that as someone who would take a bullet for Trump. I’m so disappointed,” Loomer tweeted.
Clearly irked, Loomer allowed her thoughts to be known in more than one social media posting.
“How are we supposed to ever see the US under the Trump admin designate the Muslim Brotherhood as a terrorist organization if the US is now going to accept a $400 million jet from Qatar to fly the US President and his staff around on?” Loomer inquired in a separate tweet.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt has insisted that Trump is operating within the realm of the law if he accepts the gift, contrary to critics’ claims regarding potential violations of the Emoluments Clause.
The clause can be located within Article I, Section 9, Clause 8 of the Constitution, which states: “And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, accept of any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.”
However, the Trump administration holds that the plane is a gift to the nation, rather than to Trump himself.
That said, a rift within the Republican party is not ideal, especially when viewing how devastating such a rift has been for the Democrats.
Thus, it would be optimal to streamline public messaging regarding what Trump plans and does not plan to do with the “flying palace,” which will help tamp down out of control media circuses.
Author: Ofelia Thornton
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