Statue Of Liberty Trends On X As People Compare It To Trump's Qatar Plane Gift
Since news broke that President Donald Trump was being gifted a new plane by the government of Qatar, some have tried to justify it by bringing up the Statue of Liberty, which was a gift from France to celebrate the 1876 U.S. centennial.
But while Lady Liberty's pedestal famously features the words 'Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses yearning to breathe free,' the social media reaction to Trump's plane gift was more like, 'Give me a break.'
That's because there's a big difference between the two: The Statue of Liberty was a gift to the U.S. from France to celebrate a century of U.S. independence, one Congress authorized President Grover Cleveland to accept. Meanwhile, Trump will reportedly use the $400 million Qatari plane as Air Force One until the end of his presidency andthen donate it to his presidential library.
Although Trump has claimed the plane wouldn't be a gift to him but to the Defense Department, his past behavior ― like when the FBI recovered thousands of government documents during a 2022 raid at Mar-a-Lago ― suggests a guy who will take what he wants despite any rules or norms in place.
The plane gift is raising serious ethical and security concerns from both sides, even as some people try to conflate it with France's gift of a statue.
I can't wait for the press to find out about France's so-called "gift" of the Statue of Liberty, accepted in 1886 by then-President Grover Cleveland.
— Ann Coulter (@AnnCoulter) May 13, 2025
To all of the Democrats bitching about Qatar giving us a plane...The Statue of Liberty would like to have a chat.
— AmericanPapaBear (@AmericaPapaBear) May 13, 2025
You can't be mad about Qatar sending the 400million dollar jet as a gift to the U.S.The Statue of Liberty was a gift from France. Gifts from foreign countries is not a new thing.
— Calvin (@RealCalvin1) May 13, 2025
However, many people, including a few current and former members of Congress, chimed in to explain the very significant difference between giving a gift to a country vs. sending one to a country's leader.
By far the worst take I've heard: 'We accepted the Statue of Liberty, so Trump can take the Qatari jet.' The Statue was a gift to the nation. This is a luxury bribe to one man while he holds power. If you can't see the difference, you've lost the plot.
— Mike Levin (@MikeLevin) May 13, 2025
Others pointed out that the Constitution requires Congress to approve any gifts from foreign states.
Just FYI because evidently Fox or OAN or whatever is pushing the lie that America accepted the Statue of Liberty and that's equivalent to the plane.Congress VOTED to approve receiving the statue. So congress should vote on the jet
— Adam Kinzinger (Slava Ukraini) 🇺🇸🇺🇦 (@AdamKinzinger) May 13, 2025
I've been bombarded all day by 'Joe, should we give the Statue of Liberty back?'Yep, Qatar giving a luxury plane to Trump is exactly the same as France giving the Statue of Liberty to America.
— Joe Walsh (@WalshFreedom) May 12, 2025
So the 'palace in the sky,' $400M, Uday Hussein jet is actually a gift to Defense Department that will be used exclusively by Trump and he gets to take it home? This would be like Grover Cleveland taking the Statue of Liberty and installing it in his yard when he left office. pic.twitter.com/sg51PBTVqN
— Turnbull (@cturnbull1968) May 12, 2025
I missed the part where Grover Cleveland rode around on the Statue of Liberty & then packed it up and took it with him for personal use when he left office and struck a $5.5B real estate deal with France while in office enriching himself. Can you direct me to this info? pic.twitter.com/E8o97ioZrH
— Enough Alrighty (@enough_alrighty) May 12, 2025
Remember the esoteric arguments about emoluments from Trump term 1? With a $400 million plane gifted from a foreign government, the subtlety is gone. And for those comparing the Statue of Liberty, let me know whose presidential library that one is in now. pic.twitter.com/DEpVfxDVcH
— Jeff Roush (@JeffRoushPoetry) May 12, 2025
Who can forget the classic story of the Statue of Liberty, which was shipped to the U.S. in 1886 and served as a public monument until 1889, when ownership was transferred to exiting president Grover Cleveland https://t.co/uLWWj1kQzM
— Andrew Egger (@EggerDC) May 13, 2025
Statue of Liberty staring at the Trump Administration like what the fuck pic.twitter.com/8TrmWzkRdF
— FilaFresh (@filafresh) May 11, 2025
If I was France, I'd be taking back the Statue of Liberty and giving the U.S. a packet of Kleenex instead.
— PNW Area Man (@Notalwayswrite) May 13, 2025
Literally speechless: ABC reports Trump will accept a luxury jet from Qatar to be used as Air Force One, then transferred to his presidential library for personal use. A foreign regime gifting a jet to a former president. It's bribery in broad daylight. pic.twitter.com/TVZfO52L9l
— Matt McDermott (@mattmfm) May 11, 2025
Congress approved the Statue of Liberty. If Trump wants the Qatar plane, the Constitution says he needs Congressional to vote in favor of it. https://t.co/6sH5Rukc6I
— Eric Nelson (@literaryeric) May 13, 2025
Senior Trump Aide Throws Extraordinary Rant On Live TV Over Qatar Jet Gift
Trump's Plan To Accept Qatari Jet Gift Raises Ethical, Security Concerns
Qatar Says No Final Decision Made On Gifting Trump A Jet To Use As Air Force One
Donald Trump Makes Outrageous 'World Class' Claim Over Qatar Jet 'Gift'
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