Trump to accept 747 from Qatar to use as Air Force One, reports say
Trump official talks suspending habeas corpus
President Trump’s top policy advisor, Stephen Miller said outside the White House on Friday that the Trump administration was "actively looking at" suspending habeas corpus, the constitutional right for people to legally challenge their detention by the government. This would serve as a way for the administration to expand its legal power to deport people who are in the US illegally.
President Donald Trump will reportedly accept a luxury Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet from Qatar’s royal family and upgrade it to use as Air Force One, according to multiple reports.
Trump’s new 747
Big picture view:
ABC News reports that Trump plans to use the plane as a new Air Force One until he leaves office, then continue flying it for personal use.
By the numbers:
According to The New York Times, the jumbo jet could be the biggest foreign gift ever received by the U.S. government, raising serious ethical questions. New Boeing 747-800s cost roughly $400 million.
Dig deeper:
The New York Times reports that the luxury plane will be a gift to Trump’s presidential library so he can continue to use it after he leaves office. It’s expected to be announced during his trip to the Middle East this week, reports say. Trump plans to visit Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates in the first extended foreign travel of his second term.
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Trump intends to convert the Qatari aircraft into a plane he can fly on as president, with the Air Force planning to add secure communications and other classified elements to it.
U.S. President Donald Trump disembarks from Air Force One at Tuscaloosa National Airport on May 01, 2025 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Photo by Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images)
But it will still have more limited capabilities than the existing planes that were built to serve as Air Force One, as well as two other aircraft currently under construction, an unnamed former U.S. official told The Associated Press.
The existing planes used as Air Force One are heavily modified with survivability capabilities for the president for a range of contingencies, including radiation shielding and antimissile technology. They also include a variety of communications systems to allow the president to remain in contact with the military and issue orders from anywhere in the world.
The other side:
The Qatari government acknowledged discussions between the two countries about "the possible transfer" of a plane to be used temporarily as Trump’s Air Force One, but denied that the jet "is being gifted" or that a final decision had been made.
Is it legal?
Dig deeper:
The Constitution’s Emoluments Clause, Article I, Section 9, Clause 8, bars anyone holding government office from accepting any present, emolument, office or title from any "King, Prince, or foreign State," without congressional consent.
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But administration officials, anticipating questions about the president accepting such an alleged large gift from a foreign government, have prepared an analysis arguing that doing so would be legal, according to ABC.
Trump’s family business raises questions
The backstory:
Trump's family business, the Trump Organization, which is now largely run by his sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump, has vast and growing interests in the Middle East. That includes a new deal to build a luxury golf resort in Qatar, partnering with Qatari Diar, a real estate company backed by that country’s sovereign wealth fund.
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Administration officials have brushed off concerns about the president’s policy interests blurring with family's business profits. They note that Trump's assets are in a trust managed by his children and that a voluntary ethics agreement released by the Trump Organization in January bars the company from striking deals directly with foreign governments.
But that same agreement allows deals with private companies abroad. That is a departure from Trump’s first term, when the organization released an ethics pact prohibiting both foreign government and foreign company deals.
Qatar is home to the state-owned airline Qatar Airways. The country has worked to have a close relationship with Trump after he apparently backed a boycott of Doha by four Arab nations in his first term. Trump later in his term applauded Qatar.
What they're saying:
White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, when asked Friday if the president during his upcoming trip might meet with people tied to his family’s business, said it was "ridiculous" to suggest Trump "is doing anything for his own benefit."
The Source: This report includes information from The Associated Press, ABC News and The New York Times.