Trump's aircraft brillery scandal does not slow down

The Atlantic:

The Maga World Glace on Trump's Qatar-Jet

Some of the largest allies of the President fade his plan to accept the luxury plane.

But in a rare moment of the defiance, some of the loudest protest screams come against the possible gift from some of Trump's most determined allies. “I think if we changed the names on Hunter Biden and Joe Biden, we would all freak out on the right,” Ben Shapiro, A Daily wire Co -founder, he said in his podcast. “President Trump promised to dismiss the swamp. In fact, this is not the swamp.”

Even in Washington, a capital that is now stunned to scandals that were once unthinkable, the idea of ​​accepting the jet is stunning. Trump's second administration again shows a disregard for norms and traditional legal and political laughter in the elected office – this time on a really gigantic yardstick. Trump's team has announced that the gift would be legal because it would be donated to the Ministry of Defense (and then to the presidential library). However, the federal law prohibits government employees to accept a gift of more than 20 US dollars from every person. The retired General Stanley McChrystal, who once commanded the US armed forces in Afghanistan, told us that he could not accept lunch in the main cooling capacity. Former federal employees shared similar reactions on social media.

GROK on X (AI Sumplic):

Trump's Middle East is more about enriching himself or making America more secure

Trump's Middle East trip, which focuses on Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the VAE, appears from a mixture of economic and security goals, but the balance is strongly on business transactions and personal profits based on the available evidence. The trip prioritizes massive investments -Saudi -Arabia alone promised the United States $ 600 billion in order to deepen the economic ties in energy, AI and defense. Sources such as Fox Business and the New York Times emphasize Trump's focus on “business, business, business” with offers that may be worth 1 trillion US dollar. Contributions to X, such as @Marioskaratzias And @H_r_matterRepeat this and highlight a trillion dollar agenda that overshadows diplomacy or human rights.

Critics, including Senator Schumer and contributions such as @JuddleegumRefer to a personal enrichment in which Eric Trump's former regional business with the projects for sovereign asset funds and Trump organization in Jeddah, Dubai and Doha are found. Washington Post and the Foreign Ministries indicate that Trump could use his position for family businesses, with golf investments drawing attention to concerns in the conflict of interest. The Atlantic Council and the NPR find that diplomatic goals such as Gaza peace or Iranian stability are secondary or “beyond range”, with Trump's team describing the stops as “safe” for action.

If you have lost grok …

Mother Jones:

We still don't know what Kash Patel did as a consultant for Qatar

Or how much money the FBI director was paid for by Doha.

In a strange turn During his confirmation process, Kash Patel was unable to disclose any considerable personal financial information until after the Senate hearing in January via his nomination to the FBI director. As a result, a special article, which is listed in his financial disclosure form, received no attention during this hearing: Patel's work as a consultant for the embassy of Qatar. In this document, Patel did not state what he did for Qatar or how much he was paid.

Even now – almost three months after taking over the top of the nation's highest law enforcement agency, the details of the patel's Qatar connection remain a mystery.

This week Mother Jones contacted the FBI and wrote Patel an SMS, asked if it was the services for Qatar and what payments and what payments he received. Neither replied.

Patel is just one of several top administration helpers from Trump who have had financial relationships with this Arab monarchy. Susan Wiles, Trump's chief of staff, worked for a lobby company that represent Qatar. Attorney General Pam Bondi Lobier For the Qataris. Mike Huckabee, now US ambassador in Israel, was paid 50,000 US dollars for visiting Qatar in 2018. Steve Witkoff, Trump's special representative in the Middle East, also installed money from Qatar. In 2023 the sovereign assets in Qatar bought Witkoffs Company's Park Lane Hotel worth 623 million US dollars. The Trump organization itself lately Complete a deal Development of a luxury golf resort in Qatar. And now is Qatar in the face of As a gift to Trump, a jumbo airline worth around 400 million US dollars for Trump as Air Force One. The plan is said to be for the 747 transmitted To Trump's Presidential Library Foundation after completing his office, where it could get under his personal control.

The Bulwark:

Trump raves about envy to the house of Saud

Cleptocracy in American style is okay and everything. But what Trump really wants is the way with aggressive repression, without dissent and a bone saw in the case.

When the American presidents still believed in the principles of the American Republic, they accepted that they still had to work with despotisms like Saudi Arabia. Nevertheless, they mostly tried to move them to the goal of a freer society, albeit slowly. “Liberalization” was the hope of riad to Beijing. The goal may not always have been pursued consistently or effectively. But it was endured as a not approved hope as a desirable result.

No longer. The word “liberalization” now seems antique. In the era of Trump and Putin and XI and Bin Salman and many others, autocracy, plutocracy and cleptocracy are the path of the world. It is considered stupid to defend yourself against these facts in life. In fact, it is assumed that it is desirable to hug them.

G Elliott Morris/Starch in Numbers:

New survey: Americans reject the cuts against Medicaid and want Democrats to control the US house

… and Kamala Harris leads Donald Trump in a hypothetical reserves from 2024. Results from the opening strength in numbers/verasight survey

The Americans disapprov the work that Donald Trump does as President and prefers the Democratic US House candidate for the 2026 Midterms by 6 points, a new strength in numbers/verasight survey. In a survey experiment, the support of the president's immigration agenda falls if the respondents are informed about false deportations such as the case of Kilmar Abrego Garcia.

Adults say that the economy and inflation are their top priorities, but do not believe that a party prioritizes the problems enough. A majority reject budget cuts for social programs such as Medicaid to extend tax cuts and reduce the deficit. If the election in 2024 was held today and the non-voters are allowed to participate, the electorate on Donald Trump in the direction of Kamala Harris would bend by 5 points, 47% to 42%.

Politico:

The White House takes into account plan B, as a Doge cuts a wall on the hill

The Republican Senate was skeptical about the codification of DOGES Massive Reductions.

This effort is a dead end on the Capitol Hill, whereby the Republicans warn the White House that it already has a difficult chance of driving up your so -called megabill, although it only requires a simple majority of republican votes in the Senate.

While the explanatory package would move on a separate route, the White House recognizes that the congress is busy. Therefore, there is a much longer timeline to codify Doge cuts and at the same time leave the opportunity to question the law on combating update control, the law of 1974, which restricts the ability of a president, to hold back from the congress. Trump's allies have argued that the president has already been authorized to hold back expenses, but it would probably be in the courts to decide because the constitution gives the congress the authority of the handbag.

“The focus is currently on the reconciliation calculation,” said an official of the White House, who granted anonymity. “I think there is an appetite in Capitol Hill, within the two years in which we have to codify the work of Doge. Capitol Hill's procedures may not allow it to happen now, but it does not mean that it will not happen later.”

Several GOP senators expressed deep reservations about the codification of Doge -cuts as the White House wants.