Homeland Security looks to buy a new $50M jet for secretary and Coast Guard officials
The Department of Homeland Security wants to spend about $50 million to buy a new long-range Gulfstream jet to replace an aging one used by Secretary Kristi Noem and top Coast Guard and DHS officials.
The request for funding, to come from the Coast Guard's 2025 fiscal year budget, came up during a House appropriations subcommittee meeting on Wednesday. Democratic Rep. Lauren Underwood of Illinois said she was 'horrified' to receive a 'last-minute addition' to the service's budget proposal for the jet, noting Noem has another Gulfstream to use.
'We should be investing in our national security and improving the lives of our Coasties — not wasting taxpayer dollars on luxury travel and political stunts,' Underwood, the ranking member of the Homeland Security Subcommittee on Appropriations, said in a social media post. The Coast Guard is overseen by DHS.
The request for a new jet comes as President Donald Trump considers accepting a luxury Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet as a gift from the ruling family of Qatar.
Adm. Kevin Lunday, the acting commandant, said the Coast Guard, like the other military services, operates two military 'long-range command and control aircraft' and the one being replaced is more than 20 years old.
'Like a lot of the rest of our operational aviation fleet and our cutters and our boats and our shore facilities, it's old and it's approaching obsolescence and the end of its service life,' he said during the hearing. 'The avionics are increasingly obsolete. The communications are increasingly unreliable, and it is in need of recapitalization like much of the fleet.'
Lunday, who became acting commandant on Jan. 21 after Trump, a Republican, fired Commandant Adm. Linda Fagan, said the jet is needed to provide the DHS secretary, deputy secretary, himself, the acting vice commandant and two area commanders with "secure, reliable, on-demand communications and movement to go forward.'
The current plane is also 'outside the Gulfstream's service life, and well beyond operational usage hours for a corporate aircraft,' Assistant DHS Secretary Tricia McLaughlin said in a written statement, calling its replacement 'a matter of safety.'
The agency did not immediately respond to questions about Noem's use of the plane or other details about the agency's request.
The Coast Guard received its other long-range command and control C-37B aircraft in 2022, saying at the time its mission was to 'operate as a command and control platform anywhere in the world for the secretary of Homeland Security, the commandant of the Coast Guard, and other top DHS leadership.' That jet, which has a range of 5,000 nautical miles and can carry 12 people, is based at Coast Guard Air Station Washington, D.C.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
New York Post
an hour ago
- New York Post
Republicans clobber Democrats in Congressional Baseball Game for fifth straight year
Republican lawmakers crushed their Democratic counterparts Wednesday at the annual Congressional Baseball Game in Washington, DC. The GOP's 13-2 win over the Dems in Nationals Park marks the fifth straight year Republicans have defeated their political rivals on the diamond. Rep. Greg Steube (R-Fla.), who was seriously injured in a ladder fall two years ago, pitched five innings for the GOP, striking out seven Democrats. 9 The Democratic team stood on the field during the national anthem at the annual Congressional baseball game. Getty Images 9 Rep. Pete Aguilar (D-CA) pitched for his party on Wednesday. Getty Images 9 Sen. Eric Schmitt (R-MO) sported his red uniform as he hit a ball during the event. Getty Images 'I am going to take an ice bath tomorrow,' Steube quipped after the game. The MVP award went to Rep. August Pfluger (R-Texas), who made a spectacular diving catch to end the first inning after Democrats loaded the bases. Pfluger's close play went viral on social media. 'Proud to have been selected MVP for this year's Congressional Baseball Game!' the Texas Republican wrote on X. 'Couldn't have asked for a better support team here in DC! Another huge win for Republicans.' The game was far more subdued than last year's edition, which saw anti-Israel protesters disrupt the national anthem and climate change activists rush the field. 9 U.S. House Majority Leader Rep. Steve Scalise (R-LA) fist bumps Rep. August Pfluger (R-TX). Getty Images 9 Scalise holds the trophy after the Republicans win the annual Congressional baseball game at Nationals Park. Getty Images 9 U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-CO) reacts during the annual Congressional Baseball Game for Charity at Nationals Park in Washington, D.C. on June 11, 2025. REUTERS Former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) greeted her colleagues in the Democratic dugout at one point during the game and received cheers from the blue team's fans. More than 30,000 tickets were sold for the game, which raised $2.8 million for dozens of charities. 'Team GOP takes the WIN!! 🏆🇺🇸 Proud to take the field with my Republican colleagues tonight and bring home the win,' House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) wrote on X. 'We raised $2.8 million for local charities. We're not tired of winning!' 9 U.S. House Speaker Mike Johnson was spotted in the crowd during the game. REUTERS 9 U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) celebrates after running to home plate. Getty Images 9 Both teams celebrate on the field after the Republicans defeated the Democrats. REUTERS In 2017, Scalise was shot by a left-wing extremist during a GOP team practice in Alexandria, Va., a day before that year's edition of the game. Republicans hold an overall edge over Democrats in the series by five games, with 47-42 record.
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Yahoo
Attorneys for Kilmar Abrego Garcia argue he isn't a flight risk and should be released
Attorneys for Kilmar Abrego Garcia, the Maryland man arrested by the government and sent to an El Salvador prison in error and then returned to the United States last week, argue in a court filing Wednesday that he man should be freed from jail pending trial. 'Mr. Abrego Garcia asks the Court for what he has been denied the past several months — due process,' attorneys for Abrego Garcia wrote in a memorandum opposing prosecutor's efforts to keep him detained. Abrego Garcia was returned to the United States on Friday to face federal charges that he was involved in a scheme to transport people in the United States who are not legally able to be in the country. He was in federal custody Wednesday night. Abrego Garcia's attorneys argued in Wednesday's memo that he is not a flight risk, as prosecutors have argued. His attorneys say legal standards to keep him detained have not been met. "The government isn't even entitled to a detention hearing in this case — much less detention. Mr. Abrego Garcia should be released," his attorneys wrote. An arraignment and detention hearing is scheduled for Friday in Tennessee. Abrego Garcia, 29, was arrested in Maryland on March 12, and the Department of Homeland Security claimed he was a member of the gang MS-13, which he denied. The government then deported him Abrego Garcia to El Salvador where he was imprisoned in the Center for Terrorism Confinement — despite an immigration judge's previous order that he not be sent to El Salvador. A federal judge ordered the Trump administration to facilitate his return to the United States, which administration officials resisted. The Trump administration then asked El Salvador to return Abrego Garcia to the United States last week to face human smuggling charges filed in Tennessee. The case became a high-profile battle over whether the Trump administration was bound to return Abrego Garcia under the federal judge's order. El Salvador President Nayib Bukele said at the White House in April that he would not return Abrego Garcia. The matter went to the Supreme Court, which disputed the language of "effectuate" in the judge's order but ruled that the Trump administration was required to 'facilitate' the return of Abrego Garcia. The two-count federal indictment unsealed in Tennessee charges Abrego Garcia with one count each of conspiracy to unlawfully transport illegal aliens for financial gain and unlawful transportation of illegal aliens for financial gain. The indictment alleges that from about 2016 to 2025, he and others conspired to bring migrants illegally to the United States from Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Ecuador and elsewhere, through Mexico and across the Texas-Mexico border. Abrego Garcia and a co-conspirator 'ordinarily picked up the undocumented aliens in Houston, Texas area' after they had crossed the border, the indictment alleges. The pair then would transport 'the undocumented aliens from Texas to other parts of the United States to further the aliens' unlawful presence in the United States,' the indictment says. Chris Newman, an attorney who represents Abrego Garcia's family, said last week that the Trump administration for months engaged in 'a campaign of disinformation, defamation against Kilmar and his family." This article was originally published on
San Francisco Chronicle
an hour ago
- San Francisco Chronicle
Dozens of LA-area mayors demand the Trump administration stop intensified immigration raids
LOS ANGELES (AP) — Dozens of mayors from across the Los Angeles region banded together Wednesday to demand that the Trump administration stop the stepped-up immigration raids that have spread fear across their cities and sparked protests across the U.S. But there were no signs President Donald Trump would heed their pleas. About 500 of the National Guard troops deployed to the Los Angeles protests have been trained to accompany agents on immigration operations, the commander in charge said Wednesday. And while some troops have already gone on such missions, he said it's too early to say if that will continue even after the protests die down. 'We are expecting a ramp-up,' said Maj. Gen. Scott Sherman, noting that protests across the nation were being discussed. 'I'm focused right here in LA, what's going on right here. But you know, I think we're, we're very concerned.' Hours later, a demonstration in Los Angeles' civic center just before start of the second night of the city's downtown curfew briefly turned chaotic when police in riot gear — many on horseback — charged at a group, striking them with wooden rods and later fired crowd control projectiles, including one that struck a woman who writhed in pain on the ground. After the curfew went into effect, a handful of arrests were made before the area cleared out and the evening quieted down. The LA-area mayors and city council members urged Trump to stop using armed military troops alongside immigration agents. 'I'm asking you, please listen to me, stop terrorizing our residents,' said Brenda Olmos, vice mayor of Paramount, who said she was hit by rubber bullets over the weekend. 'You need to stop these raids.' Speaking alongside the other mayors at a news conference, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the raids spread fear at the behest of the White House. The city's nightly curfew will remain in effect as long as necessary. It covers a 1-square-mile (2.5-square-kilometer) section of downtown where the protests have been concentrated in the city that encompasses roughly 500 square miles (1,295 square kilometers). 'If there are raids that continue, if there are soldiers marching up and down our streets, I would imagine that the curfew will continue,' Bass said. Those who have been caught up in the nationwide raids include asylum seekers, people who overstayed their visas and migrants awaiting their day in immigration court. The administration has cited the protests in its decision to deploy the military. Governor asks court to step in California's Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, has asked a federal court to put an emergency stop to the military helping immigration agents in the nation's second-largest city. This week, guardsmen began standing protectively around agents as they carry out arrests. A judge set a hearing for Thursday. The Trump administration called the lawsuit a 'crass political stunt endangering American lives" in its official response on Wednesday. The military is now closer to engaging in law enforcement actions such as deportations, as Trump has promised in his crackdown. The Guard has the authority to temporarily detain people who attack officers, but any arrests must be made by law enforcement. The president posted on the Truth Social platform that the city 'would be burning to the ground' if he had not sent in the military. Some 2,000 National Guard soldiers are in Los Angeles and are soon to be joined by 2,000 more along with about 700 Marines, Sherman said. Speaking in an interview with The Associated Press and ABC, Sherman initially said National Guard troops had already temporarily detained civilians in the Los Angeles protests over immigration raids. He later said he based his comments on photos and footage he had seen that turned out not to be a representation of Guard members in Los Angeles. Curfew continues in downtown LA Police detained more than 20 people, mostly on curfew violations, on the first night of the curfew and used crowd-control projectiles to break up hundreds of protesters. But officers were more aggressive in controlling demonstrators Wednesday evening and as the curfew took effect, police were beginning to make arrests. Los Angeles police have made nearly 400 arrests and detentions since Saturday, the vast majority of which were for failing to leave the area at the request of law enforcement, according to the police department. There have been a handful of more serious charges, including for assault against police officers and for possession of a Molotov cocktail and a gun. Nine police officers have been hurt, mostly with minor injures. Some were transported to a hospital and released. Protests have spread nationwide Demonstrations have also spread to other cities nationwide, including Dallas and Austin in Texas, and Chicago and New York, where thousands rallied and more arrests were made. In New York City, police said they took 86 people into custody during protests in lower Manhattan that lasted into Wednesday morning. Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the majority of demonstrators were peaceful. A 66-year-old woman in Chicago was injured when she was struck by a car during downtown protests Tuesday evening, police said. Video showed a car speeding down a street where people were protesting. In Texas, where police in Austin used chemical irritants to disperse several hundred demonstrators Monday, Republican Gov. Greg Abbott's office said Texas National Guard troops were 'on standby" in areas where demonstrations are planned. Guard members were sent to San Antonio, but Police Chief William McManus said he had not been told how many troops were deployed or their role ahead of planned protests Wednesday night and Saturday. Officers with the Texas Department of Public Safety said the Texas National Guard was present at a protest downtown.
