Some Republicans on Capitol Hill on Tuesday offered rare rebukes of President Donald Trump as he considers accepting the gift of a $400 million luxury jet from Qatar:
“Hamas is based in Qatar,” Fox Business host Maria Bartiromo said on her show. “How do they explain that away?”
“Obviously we don’t want to be straight up accepting any type of gift from any foreign government,” Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) said in the interview with Bartiromo.
“I also think that the plane poses significant espionage and surveillance problems,” Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) said in a CNBC interview.
The Qatari royal family, ahead of Trump’s trip to the Middle East this week, offered Trump the “flying palace.” The gift, should Trump take it, would violate the Emoluments Clause of the Constitution, which prohibits the president from accepting foreign gifts without congressional approval. The courts have never ruled on the clause.
Trump has described the jet offer as a “contribution” to the United States that he cannot turn down: “I could be a stupid person and say, ‘No, we don’t want a free, very expensive airplane.’ But it was — I thought it was a great gesture.”
Several Republicans, such as Reps. Dusty Johnson (R-SD) and Ryan Zinke (R-MT), argued they are not sure whether the gift would violate the Emoluments Clause, but Sen. Rand Paul (R-KY), a libertarian who at times has broken from Trump, gave a clearer answer:
“The Constitution specifically says you can’t take gifts from foreign leaders,” he told Fox News. “I don’t know that we can have an honest appraisal of their human rights record and decisions on arms sales if we’re receiving $400 million gifts from a country. So, I’m not for it.”
Only a few GOP lawmakers, like Sen. Tommy Tuberville (R-AL), one of his most ardent supporters, voiced support for the offer.
Other Republicans honed in on the bad optics of the president taking a gift from a country that engages in many human rights abuses, and some even argued the plane is a security risk since Qatar helps fund Hamas and has a close relationship with Iran, a U.S. adversary:
Reporter: “[Trump] seems to intend to use it for Air Force One. Do you have security concerns?”
“Well, they better sweep that plane from front to back,” Sen. Cynthia Lummis (R-WY) said after she laughed.
For his part, Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R-SD), who could apply the most pressure on Trump to not accept the gift and potentially launch an investigation, promised there would be “plenty of scrutiny” if the president takes the jet.
