Donald Trumpis all too comfortable brushing aside criticism fromDemocratsand the“fake news media”, but when the flak over his decision to accept a $400m luxury jet from the Qatari government comes from his most devoted supporters it might behoove the US president to listen.
Stars of Trump’s Make America great again (Maga) firmament are speaking out in unambiguous terms against the plan for him to be donated a jet described as a“palace in the sky”and convert it into Air Force One. They are damning the idea in Trump’s own language – telling him this is not “draining the swamp” as he promised to do during his first presidency, and nor does it conform to the theme of his second Oval Office term: “America First.”
Ben Shapiro, the prominent rightwing commentator, led the charge on hisdaily podcast. “President Trump promised to drain the swamp – this is not, in fact, draining the swamp,” he said.
LinkingQatarto the militant Palestinian group Hamas and Al Jazeera, the media network that is widely detested on the right and is partly funded by the Qatari government, he added: “Taking sacks of goodies from people who support Hamas, Muslim Brotherhood, Al Jazeera, all the rest, that’s not America First … If you want President Trump to succeed this kind of skeezy stuff would be stopped.”
The planned gift of the 13-year-old, Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet, which Trump would inherit personally after he leaves the White House, has achieved the seemingly impossible: it has united the president’s most fervent fans with his most ardent opponents. Laura Loomer, the far-right Maga activist, warned that the proposed gift would put “such a stain on the administration”.
Loomer said she loved Trump and would “take a bullet for him. But I have to call a spade a spade. We cannot accept a $400m ‘gift’ from jihadists in suits.”
The conservative New York Post, meanwhile,publishedan editorial headlined: “Qatar’s ‘Palace in the Sky’ jet is NOT a ‘free gift’ – and Trump shouldn’t accept it as one.”
Rightwing pundits on social media have proceeded to dredge up uncomfortable material for Trump with an enthusiasm which they normally reserve for progressive Democrats. A clip of Trump talking on the White House lawn from 2017 in which heaccused Qatarof historically being “a funder of terrorism at a very high level” circulated widely.
The maelstrom comes as Trump begins a four-day tour of wealthy Gulf states, arriving in Saudi Arabia on Tuesday. His aim is to seal a number of lucrative investments and arms deals in the region, but the visit is in danger of being overshadowed by the plane controversy.
Republicans in the US Senate have also begun to pipe up, speaking ominously about interrogating the gift under the emoluments clause of the US constitution. That clause prevents federal officials, including the president, from accepting high-value gifts and payments from foreign governments without the say-so of Congress.
Rand Paul, the Republican senator from Kentucky, told Fox News that in his opinion “it’s not worth the appearance of impropriety”.
“Whether it’s improper or not – I don’t think it’s worth it,” Paul said.
He added: “It’s not like a ride on the plane. We are talking about the entire $400m plane.”