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Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
'It's a Nightmare': 3 Rabbis on Israeli Embassy Aides Killed
Security officers surround the Israeli Embassy in Washington, DC, on May 22, 2025, following a shooting that left two people dead Credit - Brendan Smialowski—AFP via Getty Images The Jewish community around the U.S. is reeling from the fatal shooting on Wednesday of two Israeli Embassy employees outside the Capital Jewish Museum in Washington, D.C. The Justice Department has charged 31-year-old Elias Rodriguez with first-degree murder and other crimes. According to court documents, Rodriguez allegedly told police, 'I did it for Palestine, I did it for Gaza.' A day after the targeted killings of Yaron Lischinsky and Sarah Milgrim, TIME spoke with three rabbis as they were grappling with the aftermath of the tragedy. The religious leaders—two men and one woman—discussed the shooting amid a broader rise in anti-Semitic activity, and their thoughts on where local and federal officials are falling short. These conversations have been edited for length and clarity. What are your thoughts after the shooting? My immediate thoughts are just obviously with the families and friends and the community of the folks who died last night. That's my immediate thought. Beyond that, it's hard. I'm both a rabbi and I'm just a Jew living in DC. On the personal level, just like any other Jewish person in DC, in this country, it's scary to think that we'd be targeted for being in a Jewish space. As a rabbi, I'm showing up in Jewish spaces on a regular basis. I'm publicly identified as Jewish. So that's scary. There's also feelings of anger. This is the natural outgrowth of hateful rhetoric that we've been seeing from all kinds of different groups in this country. Jews know from our history that hateful rhetoric leads to hateful action. You see that playing out last night. As a rabbi, I've got this added burden of trying to make meaning of this moment. I'm not sure what meaning there is. It's pretty senseless. It's pretty painful. I can say with confidence that violent political action is not going to move us toward peace. It's not going to heal anything. That's the one thing I'm clear on. I'm not clear on a lot else, to be honest. What's it been like to be a rabbi during the last year and a half when there's been an increase in anti-Semitic activity? It's not been easy. Being a rabbi, being a spiritual leader, is always tough. But when you have that added layer of feeling like there's increased hate toward this group of people that you're spiritually leading, that just adds to a whole other set of challenges. It would be nice to be able to just focus on helping people deal with the issues they're struggling with, beyond these massive global conflicts that we didn't sign up for. Jews have a way of showing up in times of crisis which I think is a beautiful instinct. So part of my work in the last year and a half has been helping people show up and connect—to fight the instinct to self isolate. But again I don't really have the answers of how to make sense of everything that is going on, how to care for ourselves and our immediate loved ones and community while also dealing with the broader political shifts and challenges. It's been an exhausting time as a rabbi, but, I think I speak for the folks in my community, it's just been exhausting for everyone. Have you seen members of your community make changes to how they go about their lives for the last year and a half because of that increased sense of threat and anti-Semitic rhetoric and action? I have, but maybe not in the way you are expecting. I have seen people commit more to their Judaism, to feeling like now more than ever, we need to show up for one another, fight for a just world that we believe in, stand for our values, unapologetically display our Judaism. I've been really inspired by the people I serve. There's obviously fear, but I've seen a refusal to be defined by that fear. The Trump administration has been putting pressure on universities to crack down on pro-Palestinian protests. Has that been helpful? It has not, in my opinion. I know there are other Jews who disagree with me, but from where I'm sitting, that is very clear weaponizing of anti-Semitism to promote the Trump administration's agenda. I gave a sermon about it a month or so ago. Project Esther is truly horrifying. I recommend everyone read it. I recommend every Jew read it. It does not speak for me. It does not speak for my community. It does not speak for the majority of Jews in America. Using a very real threat of anti-Semitism to promote a very particular and hateful agenda is not going to help anyone, including Jews in America. I would like to see a more holistic approach to combating anti-Semitism in pro-Palestinian camps—I don't want to dismiss that. But here is a lot of anti-Semitism on the right from white nationalists, and there's not one word about that in Project Esther's very long document. And that is very discouraging and disappointing. What more can be done to protect the Jewish community in the country? At the risk of sounding cliché, we need to stand up to hateful rhetoric wherever we see it, and not just as it relates to Jews. Hateful rhetoric just makes everything more volatile and more dangerous for everyone. I think marginalized communities need to stand together in solidarity and realize that white nationalism and the type of movements that are seeking to eliminate difference—that will target all of us. I think appreciating and fighting for a vision of America that celebrates democracy, that celebrates differences in viewpoints—it seems obvious when I say it out loud—but this is the America that I believe in. This is the America that has been so good to Jews in this country, and an America that does not embrace difference and diversity is a dangerous direction for this country for Jews and everyone. Anything else? Part of what makes this moment so painful is, on one hand, you see the very real impact of anti-Semitism, of hateful rhetoric, and on the other hand, I'm very concerned about the way that last night's events and other such anti-Semitic events are going to be co-opted by people who do not have the best intentions. Tell me about this moment and what you're hearing from the community? Let me start by saying this is something I haven't stopped thinking about since I heard about it. It's been devastating, completely devastating. It's just horrific. It's a nightmare. I've been in the city for over 20 years. The mayor and I have a long friendship. I voted for her several times. But I'm deeply disappointed. I said that to her. She had a gathering today, and I said I'd like to see some introspection from you. Obviously the person who pulled that trigger was a murderer, is a murderer, and even if you've got the best security in the world, it might not have prevented that. But the mayor, I think, has fallen short, in general, in working to protect the Jewish community in DC, in creating an environment where the Jews of DC feel safe. I'm working on a letter, literally the second before you called, asking the attorney general to conduct a federal investigation of the DC police department because I have concerns. I know many people have told me they don't feel safe in the streets of DC. That's because the mayor has taken a policy that has not enforced the law when it comes to the protection of the Jewish people from these very intimidating, harassing anti-Semitic protestors. I'm asking the attorney general to look into this, to tell us what's going on, and for there to be a federal investigation into it, because there was an environment here where I did not feel safe, many Jews in DC did not feel safe and the mayor bears some responsibility for that. Have you seen members of the community make changes in how they go about their lives because of that fear and concern? For sure people have made changes about how they go about their lives, without any question. I know I've made changes, so I think for sure people have made changes. People have told me about how they are afraid to wear their kippah … on their head. People have told me they are afraid to walk the streets of DC. What would you like to see the DC police and federal government do now that they are not doing at the moment? I want to see that they protect the law and make sure that the Jewish community feels safe, that they stop the harassment, intimidation, the threats. I'd like to see that whoever was in charge of making these policies be removed from their position. The Trump Administration is putting pressure on universities to crack down on protests. Do you think that's helpful? I think that DC is a city on a hill. People are looking at DC and seeing inaction at best and malevolence at worst, and they're worried from it. So I think the federal government should make an example of DC and should say, 'Let's look at their policies, are they helpful, protective of the Jewish community?' I think the federal government should step in here because the mayor did not do a good job. Do you have a message for the Jewish community in the US in the wake of this shooting? Now is not the time to be silent. Now is the time to demand more from our elected officials. Now is the time to be vigilant and to open up our voices. We are crying today at this senseless attack, this vicious attack, and we cannot just cry, we have to raise our voices and demand that the Jewish community receives full protection. What have your thoughts been after the targeted murders outside the Capital Jewish Museum? First of all, just tragic, these two young people about to get engaged and in the prime of their lives—their lives were just taken away from them. We have to just have a moment of recognizing the tragedy for their families and their friends. And then, of course, in the broader context, anti-Semitism has risen over the last couple of years and some of it has emerged from anger about the war, And certainly anger about the war and the way Israel has carried out the war is justified, but that should not translate into anger or violence against Jews. In the last couple of years, the real fear in the Jewish community has been growing steadily. I think that many of us hoped that we wouldn't end up with a situation like this but also understood it could happen and feared that it would happen. There's a line in Proverbs that says that, 'Death and life are in the hands of the tongue'. And unfortunately it's true that violent speech and specifically speech that dehumanizes Jews and dehumanizes Israelis and justifies their killing—unfortunately there are some people that will take that and turn it into action. Have you seen members of your community make changes to how they go about their lives? I think the Jewish community has certainly been investing a lot more in security. Every synagogue that you go into, every Jewish institution, has a lot more security than they would have a couple of years ago. I think that now people might be looking behind them when they leave a Jewish event, which is really horrible and tragic. At the same time, for many in the Jewish community, this is not the hardest moment in Jewish history. Unfortunately there have been many, many hard moments in Jewish history, and it sort of defies logic that Jews have even survived. And so also for many Jews it is the moment to really dig in and be joyful and to celebrate their Judaism. I spent the afternoon at an ordination ceremony of new Conservative rabbis and cantors. And there's so much joy there because here's people who are starting out their careers as rabbis and cantors and who chose that career because they want to serve the Jewish people. It was a reminder that many Jews continue to recommit and reengage. As you know, the Trump administration has been putting pressure on universities to crack down on pro-Palestinian protests, what kind of impact has that had? Has that been helpful to the Jewish community? That is absolutely not helpful. The Trump administration does not actually care about Jews and it doesn't care about preventing anti-Semitism and we know that in part because Trump is empowering white nationalists—he pardoned the January 6th offenders. We saw there were horrific murders of Jews in the first Trump administration in Pittsburgh and Poway and a lot of white nationalist violence against Black people in Buffalo and Latinos in El Paso in a Walmart. We know that he is not actually interested in fighting anti-Semitism. We also know that for all of his talk about protecting students at universities, he closed down the Office for Civil Rights which is the office at the Department of Education that would actually investigate a bias complaint. What he's doing now is using Jews as a wedge to undermine democracy and do what he actually wants to do, which is to take down universities. That's what autocrats always do, right? That's what we saw with Orban in Hungary and Erdogan, is you go after universities because they are places of free expression and critical thinking. So that's his real interest. It's about closing down DEI programs. In Hungary, we saw Orban eliminate women and gender studies. This is preventing universities from caring for their LGBT students, their trans students in particular. So this is certainly not helping Jews to basically dismantle democracy and defund universities. What kind of things can be done to protect the Jewish community in America? Jewish communities have always been safest in places with strong protections for individual liberties, for religious freedom, for freedom of speech, for democracy. So really, protecting those institutions which are what has made Jews safe in this country is what's going to keep Jews safe. Anything else you'd like to add? First, there's absolutely no justification for the murders that happened last night. And there's no justification based on the war. I know there are some people who say maybe it wasn't anti-Semitic, it was political. No. It was 100% an anti-Semitic crime. There's no equivocating about that. It was an attack outside of a Jewish museum, outside of a Jewish event. And there's some people who want to use these attacks to shut down all pro-Palestianian activism, to try to enforce greater restrictions on free speech. That is also the wrong response. We can be really careful to define what is criticism of Israel, the way you would criticize any country including the United States, and what is anti-Semitism, which includes the dehumanization of Jews and Israelis, justifying violence against them. We can be really crystal clear about that. Contact us at letters@
Newsweek
14-05-2025
- Politics
- Newsweek
FBI Warns Of Scam Targeting Student Visa Holders In US
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The FBI is warning the public about a fraud scheme targeting foreign students living in the United States on valid student visas. Scammers have targeted students from the United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Jordan so far, the FBI said in a public service announcement on Tuesday. The seal of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on the J. Edgar Hoover Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) building in Washington, DC, on March 10, 2025. The seal of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) on the J. Edgar Hoover Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) building in Washington, DC, on March 10, 2025. Brendan Smialowski/AFP via Getty Images The Context The alert comes as President Donald Trump is on a trip to the Middle East, with stops in Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the UAE. In the past month, the Trump administration stripped about 5,000 foreign students of their legal status in the U.S. as part of a crackdown on those involved in campus protests and pro-Palestinian activism, putting them at risk of deportation. But as court challenges mounted, the administration said it was restoring the previously terminated legal statuses of students while developing a framework to guide future action. In late April, the federal government said it was expanding the reasons international students can be stripped of their legal status in the U.S. What To Know The scheme involves scammers contacting foreign students studying in the U.S. or those in the process of coming to the U.S. and impersonating government or immigration officials "claiming the student is out of status for violations of F-1 student visa requirements or otherwise facing immigration issues," the FBI said. "Victims are threatened with prosecution or deportation and asked to pay an unknown entity or bank account to process immigration paperwork, pay university registration fees, or pay a legal fee." Sometimes, scammers will claim to be agents from the Department of Homeland Security, Homeland Security Investigations or U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, the FBI said. "In some instances, the scammers vary this scheme by presenting themselves as government officials from foreign countries," the FBI said. Diplomats from the UAE Embassy in Washington, D.C, have been impersonated, according to the bureau. To add credibility to the scam, scammers will spoof officials phone numbers, speak professionally and useaccents that match the caller's claimed origin, the FBI said. The FBI warned students to be wary of unsolicited communication from someone purporting to be from the government, especially by phone. The bureau said students should verify they are speaking to a government official by hanging up and contacting the agency through a number obtained through a third party and asking for the agent or department they were speaking with. They are also warned against providing any information without verifying the identity of the caller, providing two-factor authentication codes used to log-in to accounts or devices or downloading files to their phone or computer without verifying the source. What People Are Saying The FBI said: "Scammers have also used fictitious names that sound like government agencies, impersonate US universities, and send links to fake websites. Scammers may spoof the phone number of government agencies, foreign embassies, or universities. They may speak professionally and use the accents and/or language matching the purported location of the callers." What's Next The FBI is asking anyone who believes they may have been targeted to report it at and include as much information as possible. They also gather all relevant documentation and notify their home country's embassy and the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Diplomatic Security. Anyone who has made a payment should contact their bank immediately to attempt to reverse any fraudulent wire transfers.
Forbes
14-05-2025
- Business
- Forbes
Tariff Economics: Why Recession Risk Stays Low Despite Costs
President Donald Trump holds a chart about reciprocal tariffs. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP) ... More (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images) Tariffs by themselves will not send the U.S. economy into recession, though they will hurt the economy by a small amount. Almost all economists, including me, believe they are poor economic policy, but the magnitude of harm won't be great enough to send us into a nosedive. Uncertainty about tariffs could trigger a recession, as described in my economic forecast update. Assuming that all of the major trade deals are settled this summer, even high tariff rates will not send the economy into recession. This is a narrow view—tariffs and the short-run economic outlook—that ignores long-term consequences as well as impacts on specifically-impacted businesses, workers and consumers. After tariffs are implemented, consumers in the U.S. will have lower purchasing power. Usually this means tapering off spending over time, on an inflation-adjusted basis. They may actually spend more dollars, but they will receive less value for their transactions. An increase in the foreign exchange rate for dollars will mitigate the tariff impact. As our trade deficit falls, foreigners receive fewer dollars that they need to exchange for their own currencies. Supply and demand boosts the greenback, and then our foreign purchases become somewhat cheaper. However, net prices facing consumers will be higher. Domestic production of consumer goods and services will decline (on an inflation-adjusted basis) a small amount, but the process is complicated. Consumers will try to substitute domestic for foreign products to avoid high prices, but this ability is limited. In some cases, domestic producers do not currently have capacity to fill the domestic demand. But with consumers looking for better value than they find in imported goods, American businesses will be able to boost prices. Although they will face political pressure against price gouging, they will end discounts and sales, offer less favorable payment terms, and cite increased costs as they pay more to attract workers and compete with other companies for raw materials. (I have described in more detail how this will play out in the automobile industry.) The most import-intensive sectors illustrate this challenge. According to a Commerce Department study, the manufactured goods categories with the heaviest import percentages are apparel (88% imported), computers and electronics (69%) and electric equipment and appliances (59%). U.S. companies in these industries will enjoy boosted demand—to the extent that they have capacity—but they can hardly produce enough any time soon to replace most imported products. Businesses will need equipment capacity, an expanded supply chain of raw and intermediate materials, and they will have to find qualified workers in a fairly tight labor market. Most of these imports, though, are discretionary for consumers. People can usually delay or do without new clothes, new phones and new appliances. To the extent that consumers eschew imports with tariffs, they will have money to spend on other things. But those who feel compelled to spend despite the higher prices of imports will have less money available for domestically-produced goods. This effect will dominate, reducing GDP a bit. The least import-dominated sectors are printing (10% imported), paper (11%) and food and beverages (12%). These domestic producers will probably be able to bump their production up a fair amount relative to past import levels, though labor is generally tight across the entire economy. In between are the battle-ground industries, such as automobiles, where tariffs will tend to boost domestic demand, up to the industry's capacity. All told, consumers will have less purchasing power. They may spend more dollars, but they will receive fewer goods on an inflation-adjusted basis. Substituting domestic goods for imports may provide some short-term stimulus to the economy, offset by the reduced real spending. The spending reduction, though, will likely be gradual. People seldom change their habits suddenly. They tend to adjust to the new reality over time. Consumer expectations for future tariff changes will also impact current spending. Those people who expect tariffs to come down after President Trump's term of office ends will try to delay discretionary purchases. Others may perceive higher tariffs to be the new reality, hold their nose and buy the expensive goods. Most likely, many will try to delay big-ticket expenditures on high-tariff products. Tariffs will raise the cost of construction, though less than proportionately to the entire cost of a project. The total cost of erecting and finished a building includes land and labor, neither of which can be subject to tariffs. It's the materials prices that will feel stiff jolts from tariffs. For large projects, steel and cement will become more expensive. And most electrical components and plumbing products will be more expensive. Residential construction won't go up in cost as much, due to use of domestic lumber rather than imported steel. Higher costs won't clobber construction, but projects that are on the margin, where the developer isn't sure whether to proceed, will be cancelled, delayed or downsized. Companies in competition with imports will want to increase production capacity, but they will face a timing quandary. Many corporate equipment purchases entail long lead times. Companies will have to predict whether their tariff-induced demand will continue long enough to justify big-ticket expenditures with long lead times. Some will take the risk, others not. Companies with little import competition will likely reduce their capital expenditures. They will see higher price tags on imported equipment and also higher prices on domestic equipment. Domestic equipment sales and production will almost certainly drop. This sector totals just five percent of U.S. production, so even a large hit won't be enough to pull the economy into recession. U.S. exporters will face reduced quantity of goods demanded, as retaliatory tariffs discourage foreign buyers. In some cases, the foreign buyers will have few good options. Where they do, however, they will avoid American products. Exports of goods make up seven percent of our gross domestic product, which means that a decline won't be awful. The tariff hikes present risk to business as total inflation-adjusted spending drops. For likely tariff rates, up to maybe 30%, economic growth will slow but drop into recession. Specific businesses will be hurt harder, and long-term impacts will compound like interest—but negatively. However, companies will continue to find opportunities for growth and profitability.
RNZ News
14-05-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Luxury skyscrapers, golf courses and cryptocurrency: The Trump family's rapidly expanding Middle East business
By Curt Devine , Isabelle Chapman and Majlie de Puy Kamp , CNN US President Donald Trump speaks during the Saudi-US investment forum at the King Abdul Aziz International Conference Center in Riyadh on 13 May. Photo: AFP / Brendan Smialowski The Trump family's business ties to the Middle East have more than tripled since the president's first term in office, a CNN tally of the deals has found, including a slew of new projects announced since he reclaimed the White House. Amid the ongoing plans for luxury skyscrapers, golf courses and cryptocurrency deals in the region, Donald Trump is travelling to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates this week not only as US president, but also as the patriarch of a family whose business empire continues to expand in that part of the world. His financial ties to the Middle East have prompted concerns among government ethicists who say it's difficult to determine whether he's acting in the best interest of the United States or his pocketbook. "When the American people elect a president, they expect that person to work for them, not for profit," said Robert Weissman, co-president of Public Citizen, a consumer rights advocacy group. Such financial links, Weissman and other watchdogs say, create an opportunity for foreign powers to seek to sway United States policy through those lucrative business deals. But Trump has moved full steam ahead, seemingly embracing the overlap of his personal interests and those of the nation. He's shown he is comfortable boosting business ventures while in office - and doing so in public view. He set the tone by launching his own meme coin days before taking office, which spiked in value right after Trump offered a private dinner to its top investors last month. "I've always had an instinct for making money," Trump said in February at a conference hosted by a group launched by Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund. During the event, Trump promoted the US as ripe for investment but also touted his personal business achievements. The Trump projects in the Middle East - many of which have been announced but not yet developed - largely involve licensing agreements with foreign developers that have partnered with the Trump Organization and paid to use the Trump name. Past presidents have divested their businesses or put them in so-called blind trusts to avoid appearances of self-dealing. Trump has taken a different approach. His assets are in a trust managed by his children, and his son Eric Trump, executive vice president of the Trump Organization, has said the business will be walled off from the office of the presidency to avoid any ethical conflicts. And while the Trump Organization in January pledged to make no new deals with foreign governments during the president's second term, a recently announced deal for a Trump-branded golf course in Qatar includes a firm backed by Qatar's sovereign wealth fund, Qatari Diar. "Through this collaboration, we look forward to further strengthening Qatar's position as a preferred destination," the Qatari government minister who heads that firm said when announcing the venture earlier this month. Eric Trump said in a press release his organization is "incredibly proud" to expand the Trump brand into Qatar through Qatari Diar, and a separate real estate company, Dar Global. Eric Trump told the New York Times last month Dar Global purchased the land for the golf course from Qatari Diar. A Trump Organization spokesperson said the company has no affiliation, partnership or engagement with Qatari Diar or Qatar's government and added that the company's agreement to brand that project is with Dar Global. "The Trump Organization does not conduct business with any government entity," spokesperson Kimberly Benza said. President Trump, who famously said "I want America to win," has repeatedly sought financial boosts for the US from Gulf nations. His administration boasted about securing a UAE commitment to invest US$1.4 trillion in the US over a decade, and Saudi Arabia announced in January plans to expand trade and investment with the US by US$600 billion over four years. In March, Trump called for Saudi Arabia to spend US$1 trillion in the US. Still, critics say the actions of Trump and his business in the first few months of his second term demonstrate a willingness to personally cash in on the presidency, and some fear foreign officials have helped him do so to advance their own agendas. During Friday's press briefing, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt dismissed a question about whether the president would conduct personal business meetings on his trip. "It's frankly ridiculous that anyone in this room would even suggest that President Trump is doing anything for his own benefit," Leavitt said. "This White House holds ourselves to the highest of ethical standards." Immediately after a mob of his supporters stormed the US Capitol on 6 January, 2021, following his election loss, Trump became a pariah in much of the American business community. Hunkered down at Mar-a-Lago, he was banned from some social media apps. A software company stopped processing payments for his campaign website. Prominent financial firms distanced themselves. Even the hotel bearing Trump's name in the nation's capital was virtually empty. "We live in the age of cancel culture," Eric Trump said, reacting to those moves shortly after the Capitol riot. But some business leaders stood by Trump, such as his friends in the Middle East. "I would welcome the opportunity of expanding our relationship," Hussain Sajwani, the head of DAMAC Properties, the developer of a Trump golf course in Dubai that opened in 2017, said a week after the 6 January insurrection. Eric Trump, executive vice president of the Trump Organization and the US president's son, looks over the proposed plan ahead of the signing ceremony with Qatar's Diar and Dar Global in Doha in April. Photo: AFP / Karim Jaafar Soon, entities in the region offered new opportunities to the Trump family. After the PGA canceled its tournament at Trump's New Jersey golf course, Trump partnered with LIV Golf, a new professional golf circuit backed by Saudi Arabia. The league hosts some of its tournaments at Trump properties, including one in April. In recent years, Saudi Arabia's sovereign wealth fund, led by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, widely known as MBS, invested US$2 billion in a private equity firm launched by Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner. Kushner and MBS developed a close personal relationship when Kushner served as an adviser to Trump during his first term. Though Kushner said he would not return to the White House, multiple Trump officials and people close to Kushner say he has been informally advising US officials on negotiations with Arab leaders, CNN reported Friday. In the neighboring nation of Oman, the government's tourism arm in 2022 partnered on plans to build a Trump-branded resort, along with villas and a golf club, near the capital city of Muscat. Last summer, Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr. commemorated the launch of the joint venture by dining with Oman's crown prince near a stage emblazoned with the words, "The Ultimate Power Move". While those deals materialized during Trump's time out of office, his business's expansion in the region appears to have been supercharged after his electoral win in November. Dar Global, the real estate firm developing the Oman project as well as other Trump-branded towers announced before the election, has since promoted plans for two additional projects in Saudi Arabia's Riyadh capital and the golf club in Qatar. Dar Global's parent company, which is based in Riyadh, has committed to advancing Crown Prince MBS' ambitious plan to modernize Saudi Arabia's economy. "Don't stop believing in the Trump brand," Dar Global's chief executive, Ziad El Chaar, said in a speech posted online this month in which he touted one of the projects planned for Dubai. At that same event, Eric Trump referenced how his organization has done "so many projects" with Dar Global and added, "I'm not going to break any news, but I think there's a few more to come." He has separately commended Gulf nations for policies that favor development and reject what he has called "woke cancel culture." Just Sunday, President Trump wrote in a Truth Social post that his administration would accept a plane to replace its Air Force One as a "GIFT, FREE OF CHARGE." Two people familiar with the agreement told CNN the 747-8 was from the Qatari royal family. However, a Qatari official said the plane is technically being gifted from the Qatari Ministry of Defense to the Pentagon, which would retrofit the plane for the president's use with security features. The plane will be donated to Trump's presidential library after he leaves office, a person familiar with the matter told CNN. Trump added that the plane will "go directly" to his presidential library after he leaves office. "I wouldn't be using it," he said. Companies in the region have also boosted Trump's crypto firm, World Liberty Financial. UAE-based DWF Labs announced in April the purchase of US$25 million worth of the firm's tokens. MGX, an Emirati-backed investment firm, agreed to use a cryptocurrency launched by the firm for a US$2 billion investment in crypto exchange Binance, according to an announcement from World Liberty co-founder Zach Witkoff, whose father is Trump's special envoy to the Middle East. The chairman of MGX is the deputy ruler of Abu Dhabi and UAE national security adviser. That announcement from Witkoff prompted Democratic Sens. Jeffrey Merkley and Elizabeth Warren to press the US Office of Government Ethics to investigate the deal, which they stated could "open our government to a startling degree of foreign influence and the potential for a quid pro quo that could endanger national security," according to a letter they sent last week. "These Gulf nations are very actively trying to advance their standing in the world and having the president of the United States both do business in their country and come in an official capacity conveys very significant respectability," said Noah Bookbinder, president of Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington. "It may be a win-win for these Gulf countries and for the president and his businesses, but it's less clear that it's a win for the American people." "This is a very delicate region of the world, where there are really important decisions that need to be made about where to deploy the military, how to engage in peace negotiations, and about economic agreements," Bookbinder said. "You want the President making decisions based on what's in the interest of the American people… not based on what's going to be most helpful to his businesses." American presidents typically visit one of the country's closest allies during their first major trip abroad. Since World War II, most presidents have traveled to Mexico, Canada or the United Kingdom, according to the State Department. Not Trump. In 2017, the newly minted president traveled to Saudi Arabia where he was greeted with a lavish reception. Then, he signed an arms deal with King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud. Though Trump traveled to Italy for the pope's funeral last month, his first official presidential trip during his second term is again to Saudi Arabia. The United States and Saudi Arabia have a long history of diplomacy, mainly centered on a shared interest: oil. But Trump's relationship with Saudi Arabia was particularly close during his first term, and the kingdom, which has faced allegations of human rights abuses, benefitted. When the journalist Jamal Khashoggi - a Saudi dissident and an American resident - was killed and dismembered at a Saudi consulate in Turkey after criticizing the Saudi kingdom, the United States' Central Intelligence Agency reported that the crown prince was behind the assassination. Trump questioned his own government's conclusion, instead backing MBS. "It could very well be that the Crown Prince had knowledge of this tragic event - maybe he did and maybe he didn't!" Trump wrote in a statement. The crown prince has denied involvement in Khashoggi's killing. Ben Freeman, who directs a foreign policy program at the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft, noted that geopolitics in the region are extraordinarily complicated and Gulf nations have an array of foreign policy positions that don't align with those of the US. He said additional deals in the region, depending on the specifics, could create reputational risks for the US and even undermine national security. "There is seemingly this tit-for-tat where the Saudi regime, especially, makes investments in Trump… and Saudi Arabia is the first destination of his first state trip abroad," said Freeman. "There's a real risk that personal interests are trumping the national interest." - CNN
Forbes
13-05-2025
- Politics
- Forbes
Qatar's Royal Boeing 747-8 Gift To Trump Is A Vanity Air Force One
US President Donald Trump gestures as he walks to board Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews in ... More Maryland on May 12, 2025. President Trump is travelling to the Middle East, where Saudi Arabia will be the first stop on a four-day trip. (Photo by Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP) (Photo by BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP via Getty Images) President Trump could receive a VIP-configured Boeing 747-8 as a gift from the Qatari royal family. The aircraft would serve as Air Force One throughout the president's term in office. Aircraft ownership would transfer to the Trump Presidential Library Foundation at the end of his term rather than remain a U.S. Air Force asset to serve future presidents, as other Air Force One aircraft do. As such, the Qatari luxury plane could become the president's private aircraft after he leaves office, replacing his aging Boeing 757 Trump Force One. However, Trump has denied he would use the aircraft, so it might just become a museum piece like Ronald Reagan's Air Force One. Whatever its fate, the $400 million gift has raised some ethical and technical concerns. While the debate on these is ongoing, experts agree that the Qatari 747-8 is unlikely to meet current and future Air Force One standards. As Richard Aboulafia, an industry analyst and managing director of AeroDynamic Advisory, told DefenseNews: 'It's all based on an embarrassing misunderstanding of what Air Force One is meant to do. If it's a gold-plated palace in the sky and nothing more, have at it. If it's an actual tool [to be used in a] Air Force One is the military handle given to the U.S. Air Force planes carrying the president of the United States. So, being labeled Air Force One is a low bar. If Trump chose to fly on the Qatari 747 during his term, it would be Air Force One regardless of its capabilities. However, the presidential aircraft built for and operated by the U.S. Air Force currently serving as Air Force One are not ordinary 747s. They are VC-25, based on the 747 airframe but equipped with multiple additional features that ensure the president's security and the continuity of the administration under the most dire circumstances, including in cases of nuclear war. The contract to build two new Air Force One VC-25B aircraft to the latest U.S. Air Force specifications was awarded to Boeing during Trump's first term under a $3.9 billion fixed-price contract. Boeing has incurred over $2 billion in losses on the program and has yet to complete the aircraft. The impact of COVID-19 on production, supplier issues, and other Boeing complications have significantly delayed the new VC-25Bs. When Trump took office for his second term, the two new planes were not expected to be delivered until 2029. That has recently changed to as early as 2027. As such, Trump has expressed his displeasure with Boeing's delays on several occasions. In February, he visited the 12-year-old Qatari 747-8 parked at Palm Beach International Airport in what seemed to be another message to Boeing to hurry the program along. However, converting the second-hand Qatari royal aircraft to meet the full VC-25B specifications is likely a prolonged and costly effort. That would not satisfy Trump's urgency to fly on a new Air Force One. The U.S. Air Force's two new presidential aircraft are built on a 747-8I (intercontinental 747-8 base) but equipped with advanced technologies that help the aircraft serve as a flying situation room, enabling the President to direct the U.S. military and the government in flight during a catastrophic event. For example, Doug Birkey, executive director of the Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies, described the advanced communications systems of the VC-25 to Defense News as 'one of the most exquisite comm suites on the planet,' adding, 'It functions as a command and control center under some of the most trying conditions [imaginable]. Even just day-to-day, that thing is hyper connected.' The aircraft also has multiple classified electronic and defense systems installed and redundant systems to ensure the safety and security of its passengers. The two existing Air Force One VC-25As in service can remain in flight indefinitely during a crisis through air-to-air refueling capabilities, though that capability was not specified for the new VC-25Bs. According to the U.S. Air Force, the current presidential transport's other unique features include a self-contained baggage loader and front and rear airstairs. Onboard, the aircraft has an executive suite for the president, including a stateroom with a dressing room, lavatory and shower. It also holds the president's office and a conference dining room for the president. The aircraft has separate accommodations for staff, Secret Service, security and media personnel. Two galleys onboard can prepare up to 100 meals per service. There are six passenger lavatories onboard, plus a rest area and mini-galley for the aircrew. Additionally, the aircraft has a room equipped to handle 'minor medical emergencies' with adequate medical equipment and supplies. The unclassified December 2022 U.S. Air Force specifications for the VC-25B call for 'an electrical power upgrade, dual auxiliary power units that are usable in flight, a mission communication system, an executive interior, military avionics, a self-defense system, autonomous enplaning and deplaning, and autonomous baggage loading.' Upgrading the Qatari royal family's 747-8 to meet VC-25B standards would be costly and time-consuming. 'If [Trump] wants all the capabilities and features of Air Force One, this would be a step backwards,' Aboulafia told Defense News. 'They'd have to start over again with what they've been working on with the other 747-8 [in the VC-25B program].' Fully equipping the Qatari 747-8 to VC-25B standards is unlikely during the rapid conversion Texas-based L3Harris plans to perform on the second-hand aircraft. The company, which is a contractor to Boeing on communications systems for the VC-25 program, has said it would complete the conversion by the end of this year. However, at most, L3Harris would adjust the interior to meet the President's needs and enhance communications services onboard. The aircraft might also get Trump's preferred Air Force One red, white and blue livery, despite the heat exposure issue of the darker blue paint. However, no contractor could install the VC-25B's unique defense systems and redundancies in that timeframe. Trump took to his Truth Social platform to address criticism of the possible Qatari gift, arguing, 'So the fact that the Defense Department is getting a GIFT, FREE OF CHARGE, of a 747 aircraft to replace the 40 year old Air Force One, temporarily, in a very public and transparent transaction, so bothers the Crooked Democrats that they insist we pay, TOP DOLLAR, for the plane.' As Trump plans to transfer the plane to his Presidential Library Foundation, the gift would not be to the Defense Department but to himself. Also, there has been no indication that the president would cancel the existing VC-25B program, so the Defense Department would not save anything through the transaction. Another concern is that free sometimes also comes at a price. Experts point out that the Defense Department would first need to clear the Qatari plane for any security vulnerabilities, such as listening devices hidden onboard, before it could be converted and deployed into service for the president. 'It would present a major security concern,' Aboulafia said. Technically, the 12-year-old Qatari 747-8 would neither be a new Air Force One (except in the sense that it has not previously operated under that handle) nor a fully-equipped Air Force One. However, it would be called Air Force One as soon as Trump steps onboard and Trump could routinely fly on his vanity Air Force One while he is in office. The president would still have two fully capable Air Force One aircraft at his disposal, ready to go into service when needed. The VC-25A planes could be deployed at a moment's notice from Andrews Air Force Base when the president requires proper defense. The main concern for national security would be to ensure that the VC-25B program go ahead as planned so that the updated Air Force Ones can serve the next president of the United States.
