WE THE PEOPLE DON’T VIEW THIS AS ‘BUSINESS AS USUAL’

More from the ‘Sure he can do it, but should he?’…the NYT has more backstory to the Qatari offer to give a 747 to Trump. Everyone knows by now Trump was angling for a new plane and put officials up to buying one. They identified eight options, one of which was the Qatari plane, which Qatar had been trying to sell for at least five years in part because of the enormous cost of operating it. Qatar sent the jet to Florida at a cost estimated to be as much as $1M on February 15 for Trump to see, and he loved it. At that point, discussions turned from purchasing the plane to accepting it as a gift, although it was apparently not the Qataris who changed the terms—they were still expecting to sell it to the United States. A Qatari government official told NYT reporters that no decision had yet been made about a transfer rather than a sale. And Pentagon officials estimate that getting the plane repaired and ready for a president would cost at least $1B. And yet, administration officials lined up to say that a $400M gift from a foreign government to a US president was just fine, despite its explicit prohibition in the Constitution. Treasury Sec. Scott Bessent told CNN that Qatar giving a plane to Trump was like France giving the Statue of Liberty to the US, or England giving the country the Resolute Desk. Sure. Exactly the same. I’m sure the plane gift is also intended to reinforce democracy, freedom, and the international cooperation of nations that value those principles. The people of France raised the money to send the Statue of Liberty to the US to honor political democracy and freedom at the nation’s 100th anniversary. We the people, in turn, raised the money for the statue’s pedestal. There was never any question about it being a personal gift to Pres. Cleveland. He would have refused it if such a thing were suggested. And Congress would have impeached him if he had not. The story of the Resolute Desk is just as epic, but there’s not space here for another history lesson. You can ask Google. In both cases these were gifts to the people of the US. Not for private use by a president. These were gifts reinforcing bonds, ideals, and commonly, held principles. Not solely so the president could have a new ride. As it stands today, NPR is reporting that the plane is actually already standing by at the San Antonio airport, awaiting a specialized overhaul from a defense contractor so that Trump can use it as the next Air Force One. Even though the reality is if the plane is retrofitted and modified as necessary to actually be Air Force One, it won’t be ready until after Trump leaves office. And Boeing is already working, and has been, on new AFO models. So how much will this ‘great deal’ cost us? Make this make sense please. What a degraded presidency this is. This whole shady deal reeks of entitlement with a healthy dose of corruption. And the GOP seems just fine with it. MAGA?