MAGA ire at jet gift from ‘jihadists in suits’

The proposed $626m aircraft is a bridge too far for some of Donald Trump’s most ardent supporters.

Donald Trump meets with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman at the Saudi Royal Court in Riyadh on Tuesday. Picture: AFP

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Donald Trump has defended the gift of a luxury jet from the Qatari royal family, an aircraft he has previously described as “a palace in the sky”, amid growing criticism of the decision to accept the plane.

Worth about $US400m ($626m), the plane would probably be the most valuable foreign gift ever received by the US government, an official said.

“They’re giving us a free jet,” the President said when he was asked about the aircraft at the White House on Tuesday (AEST), adding that the reporter asking the question should be embarrassed about raising the issue. “I could say ‘No, no, no, I want to pay you, a billion, or $400m or whatever it is,’ or I could say ‘Thank you very much’.”

He then used a quote from golfer Sam Snead to defend the gift: “When you’re given a putt, say ‘Thank you very much, pick up your ball and you walk to the next hole’.”

He said it was a gift to the US rather than a personal present. “It’s a gift to the Department of Defence, and you (the reporter) should know better, because you’ve been embarrassed enough and so has your network. ABC is a disaster.”

Even some of Mr Trump’s most ardent supporters criticised ­his ­acceptance of the gift, the details of which are still to be finalised.

Laura Loomer, a right-wing podcaster and conspiracy theorist, drew attention to the Qatari government’s links with the Muslim Brotherhood and its connections with groups such as Hamas.

Mr Trump walks down the stairs of Air Force One upon his arrival at King Khalid International Airport Royal Terminal in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia Picture: AP

Doha has acted as mediator between the US, Israel and Hamas during the Gaza war. “I love President Trump,” Ms Loomer said in a social media post. “I would take a bullet for him. But I have to call a spade a spade. We can’t accept a $400m ‘gift’ from jihadists in suits.”

She questioned Mr Trump’s objectives in the Middle East. “It’s going to be hard for the admin to designate the Muslim Brotherhood and obliterate Iran­ian proxies in Hamas and Hezbollah when Qatar funds the Muslim Brotherhood, harbours Hamas, and the US accepted a $US400m jet from Qatar,” she wrote. “The biggest lobby in DC is the Qatar lobby. We are watching an Islamic takeover of our country in real time.”

The Qatari-owned aircraft is expected eventually to be donated to Mr Trump’s presidential “library” when he leaves office in 2029, allowing him to continue using it as a private citizen.

Democrats have also condemned the gift. Jamie Raskin, a congressman from Maryland, said: “A gift you use for four years and then deposit in your library is still a gift (and a grift).”

Mr Trump argued that the agreement was a shrewd business move. “So the fact that the Defence Department is getting a GIFT, FREE OF CHARGE, of a 747 aircraft to replace the 40-year-old Air Force One, temporarily, in a very public and transparent transaction, so bothers the Crooked Democrats that they insist we pay, TOP DOLLAR, for the plane,” he said in a post on his Truth Social. “Anybody can do that! The Dems are World Class Losers!!! MAGA.”

The President has been angered at delays to upgrades of the fleet of US presidential planes, known as Air Force One after the military call sign given to any plane used by a president.

The US government has hired a contractor to add secure communication equipment that the plane will need before it can transport the President.

According to the aircraft’s specifications, there is a private master bedroom that comes with enclosed office and a lounge with its own entrance to the plane.

The White House counsel’s office, as well as lawyers at the Department of Justice, said it was legal for the Department of Defence to accept the aircraft as a gift and for Mr Trump to use it after he is president. They said it would not violate laws against bribery or the constitution’s ban on officials accepting gifts “from any king, prince or foreign state”.

Karoline Leavitt, the White House press secretary, told Fox News the legal details were “still being worked out”.

The primary aircraft in the Air Force One fleet are two ageing Boeing 747-200 jets in operation since 1990. The US Air Force contracted Boeing to replace the aircraft but the project, which was agreed in 2018, has been hamstrung by delays. The new planes are not expected to be ready until 2029, by which time Mr Trump will have left office.

Mr Trump inspected the Qatari-owned 747 while it was at the Palm Beach International Airport in February, describing it as a palace. It is expected to be retrofitted by the end of the year, allowing Mr Trump to use it while in office.

The Times