By Katherine Tinsley
1:08am PDT, May 14, 2025
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Donald Trump, who was reportedly offered a luxury jet worth $400 million from the Qatar royal family, was recently slammed by Republican
Rand Paul for accepting the lavish gift in the first place.
Keep reading for the details…
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"Qatar just made Trump an offer he can't refuse," Jesse Watters said on Fox News. "A $400 million Air Force One replacement because Boeing didn't deliver their jet on time."
"Trump can ride it until his term is up. Democrats are calling this a bribe, but [Attorney General] Pam Bondi says it's legal as long as he transfers the jet to his library and eventually switches back to Trump Force One. He says only a stupid person would not take the deal," Watters told Rand Paul.
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There have been concerns by both Republicans and Democrats about the ethics of Donald Trump accepting what has been described as a "flying palace."
"The constitution in Article II talks about the president can't take emoluments or gifts from foreign leaders," Rand Paul said. "And so, there is a provision in the Constitution that says you can't do this. And so, the question is, can you do it only if it's only for official purposes?"
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Rand Paul later urged Donald Trump not to accept the plane despite the president celebrating the offer on Truth Social.
"The constitution in Article II talks about the president can't take emoluments or gifts from foreign leaders," the senator said. "And so, there is a provision in the Constitution that says you can't do this. And so, the question is, can you do it only if it's only for official purposes?"
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He went on to say that "it's not worth the appearance of impropriety, whether it's improper or not."
"So, if Qatar does give it to him and he says, 'Hey, Rand, you wanna hop on the jet down to Palm Beach, you'll say, 'No?'" Jesse Watters replied.
"I think it's a mistake, and it's just bringing up something he doesn't need,'" Rand Paul replied.
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Donald Trump defended the present on Truth Social.
"So the fact that the Defense Department is getting a GIFT, FREE OF CHARGE, of a 747 aircraft to replace the 40 year old Air Force One, temporarily, in a very public and transparent transaction, so bothers the Crooked Democrats that they insist we pay, TOP DOLLAR, for the plane," Trump wrote on Sunday, May 11. "Anybody can do that!"
