President Donald Trump accepted Qatar's $400 million Boeing 747 for U.S. use, sparking an emoluments clause ethics probe. The plane will serve as a temporary Air Force One.
www.foxnews.com
On Sunday,
Rep. Ritchie Torres, D-N.Y. (House Committe on Financial Services), wrote to the Government Accountability Office, deriding the deal as a "flying grift," arguing it violates the emoluments clause of the U.S. Constitution, which "explicitly prohibits any person holding public office from accepting ‘any present, Emolument, Office, or Title, of any kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State.'"
"I am writing to express alarm over reports that President Donald Trump is poised to accept a luxury aircraft — a Boeing 747-8 — from the government of Qatar. The plane, so opulent it has been described as a ‘palace in the sky,’ is set to be made available to President Trump for official use as Air Force One and then for private use once he leaves office," Torres wrote.
Am I lying? Did I personally make up the claim that Trump could use the plane after he leaves office?
Ultimately, whether he can or not is immaterial at this point, because this g(r)ift will benefit only one person and that person's ego and that's Trump, and he'll treat it as a favor from Qatar when they come calling.