1. United States
2. Calif.
3. Letter

The proposed acceptance of the luxury Boeing 747–8 aircraft as a gift from Qatar raises significant ethical and constitutional concerns. While the administration claims it has secured legal justification, the arrangement appears to violate the spirit, if not the letter, of the emoluments clause prohibiting federal officials from receiving gifts from foreign states. Even if structured to transfer ownership from the Air Force to the Trump presidential library the interim use of this lavish “flying palace” by a sitting president is an unconstitutional personal benefit. Moreover, the immense cost of retrofitting this aging aircraft to meet stringent security requirements for presidential transport makes little fiscal sense when the Air Force One planes being built by Boeing are slated to be delivered soon. Diverting taxpayer money to refurbish the Qatari gift is unnecessary and irresponsible. There are also legitimate national security worries about foreign entities gaining influence through the gift. The American people deserve full transparency on any strings attached to this gift. Congress must exercise its critical oversight by closely scrutinizing this proposed arrangement and ensuring that our core interests of national security, ethical governance, constitutional integrity, and fiscal responsibility are not being compromised!