Latest news with #LuxuryJet
The Guardian
14-05-2025
- Politics
- The Guardian
Stephen Colbert on Trump's international diplomacy: ‘A highest-bidder approach'
Late-night hosts mock corruption in Donald Trump's presidency after his first international visit to Saudi Arabia and acceptance of a $400m luxury plane from Qatar. Trump made his first international trip of his second term on Tuesday, to the nation of Saudi Arabia. 'A president visiting Saudi Arabia on his first official trip is a bit unusual,' said Stephen Colbert on the Late Show. 'Normally, back when we had normal, presidents would make their first international trip to the UK or Canada or any close ally. 'But like everything, Trump's decision seemed to come down to a highest-bidder approach,' Colbert continued. As Trump said in March: 'Last time I went to Saudi Arabia, they put up $450m …' Colbert broke out his Trump impression: 'OK, I'm going around the palace with a big bag. C'mon, just drop your bribe right in. Qatar gave me a jet – can you beat a jet?' On Tuesday, Trump received a lavish welcome in Riyadh, where he was escorted by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to a McDonald's semi truck. 'Of course, one of the most rewarding things about traveling the globe is getting the chance to sample the local nugget truck,' Colbert joked. The crown prince, Colbert reminded, ordered the murder and dismemberment of Washington Post columnist and Saudi dissident Jamal Khashoggi in 2018. Trump, however, described him as such: 'I like him a lot. I like him too much, that's why we give so much, you know? I like you too much.' Or as Colbert translated via Trump impression: 'You're like the son I never had.' On Late Night, Seth Meyers reacted to a statement from Trump that he was 'thinking of flying over' to Turkey to join Vladimir Putin and Volodymyr Zelenskyy for peace talks over the Russian invasion of Ukraine. 'Oh, were you?' Meyers said. 'Ok, I guess let us know. These are peace talks to prevent the escalation of a war in Europe and you're treating it like it's your neighbor grilling – 'Oh, maybe I'll come by, you're not doing veggie burgers are ya?'' During a press conference on Monday, Trump said that if China had signed a trade deal during his first term, the Chinese 'would be able to buy products that they've never been able to buy'. 'I'm sorry, you think they want stuff from us?' Meyers scoffed. 'They have iPhones. We have cars that can't get wet,' like the Tesla Cybertruck. And on Sunday, Trump's health and human service secretary, Robert F Kennedy Jr, shared photos of himself and his grandchildren swimming in a Washington creek that is contaminated with sewage and bacteria. 'You know, I used to think it was crazy that he had a brain worm,' said Meyers. 'But now I think it's crazy that he's only had one.' Qatar is helping Trump take his Middle East corruption tour to new heights And on the Daily Show, Jordan Klepper also recapped Trump's first international trip to Saudi Arabia, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates. 'You might be wondering: why did Trump pick these countries for his first foreign trip?' he said. 'Well, there's a strong geopolitical balance that – I'm fucking with you. Corruption!' As Klepper noted, the Trump Organization has construction projects in each of the three countries. 'I never thought I'd say this, but can't these countries go back to something more constructive, like funding terrorism? 'But Donald Trump doesn't see any of these 'business conflicts' as a problem,' he continued. 'If anything, he's taking conflicts to a new height,' with the acceptance of a luxury 747 jet worth $400m from the state of Qatar. The plane would serve as Air Force One, then allegedly be decommissioned and transferred to Trump's presidential library once he leaves office. 'I think we can stop pretending that this plane will be transferred to his presidential library,' Klepper laughed. 'This is like the news reporting your aunt is bringing her 'good friend Linda' to Thanksgiving.' More pressingly, 'apart from being a security concern and a potential bribe, it seems clearly unconstitutional to give the president a gift like this. But what do I know?' According to Trump's attorney general, Pam Bondi, the gift is legally permissible as Trump is not giving Qatar anything in return – at least, in the first 36 hours. It's worth noting, though, that before becoming attorney general, Bondi worked as a foreign lobbyist for the nation of Qatar, earning $115k a month. 'It looks bad,' Klepper joked, 'but if you have to understand: that's a lot of money, and money feels good to have and to spend. So now I get it.'
Bloomberg
12-05-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Can Trump Accept a Plane Gifted by Qatar?
President Donald Trump has always had strong opinions about the planes used as Air Force One, from their cost to their baby-blue color scheme. Frustrated with the growing costs and delays associated with Boeing Co. 's development of new presidential planes, Trump is turning to an unlikely alternative for his next ride: the Middle Eastern nation of Qatar, which plans to offer the president a luxury Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet. The arrangement has raised numerous questions about the ethics of accepting such a gift — even from a strategic ally. Here's what to know.
Times
12-05-2025
- Business
- Times
Trump receives luxury jet from Qatar ‘to use as Air Force One'
The Trump administration is set to accept a luxury Boeing 747-8 jet as a donation from the Qatari royal family, in what is possibly the biggest foreign gift ever to be received by the US government, according to a senior official. The plane will then be donated to Trump's presidential library when he leaves office, the official said, allowing him to continue using it as a private citizen, according to US media reports. Trump's own private aircraft, known as Trump Force One, is an older 757 jet that first flew in the early 1990s and was bought by Trump in 2011. Trump previously toured the Qatari-owned 747, which is just over a decade old, while it was parked at the Palm Beach International Airport
New York Times
11-05-2025
- Business
- New York Times
Trump Is to Accept a Luxury 747 From Qatar for Use as Air Force One
The Trump administration plans to accept a luxury Boeing 747-800 plane as a donation from the Qatari royal family that will be upgraded to serve as Air Force One, in possibly the biggest foreign gift ever received by the U.S. government, a senior official with direct knowledge of the matter said. The plane will then be donated to President Trump's presidential library when he leaves office, the official said, allowing him to continue using it as a private citizen. The plan raises substantial ethical issues, given the immense value of the lavishly-appointed plane and the fact that Mr. Trump plans to use it after he leaves office. Sold new, a commercial Boeing 747-800 costs in the range of $400 million. Mr. Trump's own private plane, known as 'Trump Force One,' is an older 757 jet that first flew in the early 1990s and was then used by the Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen. Mr. Trump bought it in 2011. The Qatari jet, if Mr. Trump continued flying it after leaving office, would give him a substantially newer plane for his own use. The plan — reported earlier by ABC News — is expected to be announced in the coming days, as Mr. Trump makes the first extended foreign trip of his presidency to three nations in the Middle East, including Qatar. It will fulfill the president's desire for a new Air Force One, after repeated delays involving a government contract to Boeing for two new jets to serve that purpose. Mr. Trump toured the Qatari-owned 747, which is just over a decade old, while it was parked at the Palm Beach International Airport in February. The New York Times reported then that the jet was being considered as a possible new Air Force One. The plane being donated by Qatar is expected to be retrofitted by a military contractor called L3Harris, in Texas, and that work can begin once the government approves how the plane is being acquired, the official said. It is expected to be finished being equipped with military capabilities by the end of the year, the official said, allowing Mr. Trump to use it while in office. A White House spokesman did not respond to a request for comment. A Defense Department official said on Sunday that the Air Force has not yet reached any agreement on a contract to refurbish the Qatari 747 to make the security upgrades and modifications necessary for an AF1, and the Air Force could not legally do so until it actually took ownership of the plane. Assuming that were to happen, the official said, it would still take an extended period of time to complete the contract and, more important, to do the actual upgrades and modifications. 'We're talking years, not months,' the Defense Department official said, speaking on condition of anonymity to discuss sensitive details about a future Air Force One. The model that the government is using for addressing the ethical issues raised by the donation, the official said, is the one followed by President Ronald Reagan's presidential library when it received the Air Force One he had flown on after it was retired from use. But at the time, Mr. Reagan did not use the plane to fly around himself. It was set up in the museum portion of his library. Another person with knowledge of the effort to acquire the plane said that the Qataris had initially offered to donate it immediately to the Trump library, and then have Mr. Trump use it while in office. But government lawyers said that would be a violation of the emoluments clause of the Constitution, the person said. The current plan has been signed off on by government lawyers who concluded it does not violate the emoluments clause of the Constitution and that the Defense Department can accept the gift, the official said.
