While Trump urged “America First”, he put on the luxury jet of Qatar as Air Force One

Washington – In Donald Trump's vision, he is supposed to initiate an American “golden age” in which the nation produces more of the goods in the world and sells more products.

But when it comes to the president's personal trips, he is ready to give the old 747 as Air Force One in favor of a luxurious jets that the royal family of Qatar, a tiny but rich Arabian country, almost 7,000 miles, wants to give to the USA

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The image of the President of the “America first”, which floats over the clouds in Qatar, the Splendor, does not match some of the Maga believers, let alone the good government groups who warn the deal could turn out the constitutional clause from foreign nations that absent in the approval of the congress.

“This is a pretty strange offer,” Senator Ron Johnson, R-WIS. said.

Laura Loomer, a Trump ally, ceased on social media that she would take over a ball for the president and that a Katar aircraft would be a “such a stain” for the Trump administration. “I'm so disappointed,” she wrote.

Replace Warren Davidson, a Republican in Ohio, not expressly Trump or the Qatar aircraft in a post -Sunday, but referred to the former Foreign Minister Hillary Clinton and the acceptance of foreign donations from the family foundation.

“At least” bad idea “,” he wrote.

Trump was not excused in a public appearance on Monday. He said that one day the plane would be an exhibition in his presidential library after leaving his office and added that he would not use it as a private person.

He praised Qatar for what he described as a generous and welcome offer. Qatar is a peninsula that exceeds in the Persian Golf and is a stop for visiting the president this week to the Middle East, the first major trip abroad of his second term.

“They give us a free jet,” said Trump. “I could say: 'No, no, no, don't give us. I want to pay you a billion or $ 400 million or whatever it is, or I could say:' Thank you very much. 'You know?”

Ali al-Ansari, a press officer in Qatar, said in a statement on Sunday that the deal would still be checked.

“The possible transmission of an aircraft for temporary use as a Luftwaffe one is currently being considered between the Qatar Ministry and the US Department of Defense, but the matter is checked by the respective legal departments, and no decision was made,” he said.

Trump confirmed his frustration about the time it needed for Boeing to complete jets that replace the 747s he is now using. The new aircraft may not be ready until 2027, the center of Trump's term.

According to three aviation and intelligence experts, the conversion of the Qatarian gift into Air Force One would have to take years to carry out and suspend possible security concerns. It would probably have to be broken down effectively, partly by part of it to ensure that there are no hearing aids or other security gaps that could enable foreign powers.

The commercial jet would then have to be converted with costly, sophisticated systems for the tank of the air, the defense of the rockets, the security communication of the government and the backup power. The plane would also have to be hardened against potential electromagnetic pulse weapons.

Air Force One is more than a means of the presidential trip. With its distinctive blue and white, it is an emblem of American power and prestige. It acts as a kind of flying bunker for the commander -in -chief who can withstand a nuclear explosion. If the transmission occurs, Air Force One would acquire what some describe as foreign powers for this typical symbol of American pride.

The Qatarian aircraft and his touch of excess also seem to contradict Trump's message that the Americans may have to do less if he asks the global economic order. Fewer dolls and pens for America's children, while the president flies stylishly.

Ari Fleischer, who was the press spokesman in the Republican President George W. Bush's White House, hired on social media that “nothing about getting Air Force One from a foreign government.”

“Air Force One should be through and through American,” added Fleischer. “It shouldn't go through foreign hands and it shouldn't be a gift from a king. Don't do it.”

Trump first toured the Qatar aircraft at the airport in West Palm Beach, Florida, near his house in Mar-Lago in February. Known as a “flying palace”, the plane clearly made a cheap impression.

“You look at some Arab countries and planes that you parked next to the United States aircraft. It's like another planet,” Trump told reporters on Monday.

During his first term, Trump complained that Air Force One was not as luxurious inside as his private plane, said a former White House official. Asked for a comment, the White House did not answer immediately.

The GOP leaders of the congress gave subdued answers when they were asked about the ideas of Trump exchanges. The spokesman for the house, Mike Johnson from Louisiana, declined a comment. The Republican chairman of the Senate John Thune from South Dakota said: “I don't know enough yet and I don't know that there was even an offer.”

The congress to approve the present seems to be a serious buoyancy. A 60-vote supermajority would be required for the Senate drop.

But if Trump progresses and accepts the plane without the consent of the congress, there may not be much to stop it. He showed in his first term that he is not feared by the elevation.

“Will the congress be accused of? Probably not,” said Richard Painter, the boss -ethik lawyer in George W. Bush's white house.

In addition, the Supreme Court gave the President a broad immunity against criminal prosecution in a pioneering judgment last year.

The press spokesman for the White House, Karoline Leavitt, insisted that the recognized gifts correspond to the law.

“Every gift from a foreign government is always accepted in full compliance with all applicable laws,” said Leavitt. “President Trump's government is committed to full transparency.”

The only scenario that Trump may have to worry about is that after completing his office, a future president can try to win the plane for the USA and to confiscate it from the Trump library.

“You may have a future lawsuit and try to repeat the aircraft as the property of the US government, as it should never have been accepted at first,” said Painter.

Newt Gingrich, a former Republican House Speaker and Trump Ally, said that Trump would make the congress “in an ideal world” to approve the gift.

“The lawyers have to go through some tires here, but if there is no consideration and it is outdoors in public space, it is not an automatic problem,” Gingrich told NBC News.

Ethics consultants in previous administrations said they were in front of expensive gifts from foreign sources, regardless of the reason. When President Obama won the Nobel Peace Prize in his first term, he rejected the associated more than $ 1 million. Instead, the Nobel Committee distributed the prize money to various charity organizations, said Norm Eisen, who was a special consultant for ethics and government reform in the Obama government.

Painter remembered that the government of Saudi Arabia offered a Rolex clock to a high -ranking official of the White House during the Bush government.

“We saw for the fact that the gift was either returned or handed over to the US government,” said Painter. “We would not have any of our national security officers of the White House run around with a Rolex watch.”