Qatari prime minister dismisses controversy surrounding Trump plan to accept gifted jet

The Qatari prime minister and minister of foreign affairs dismissed controversy surrounding President Donald Trump’s plan to accept from his country a Boeing 747-8 to be used initially as Air Force One, telling CNN it’s simply a “government-to-government transaction,” not a personal gift to Trump.

The Qatari prime minister and minister of foreign affairs dismissed controversy surrounding President Donald Trump’s plan to accept from his country a Boeing 747-8 to be used initially as Air Force One, telling CNN it’s simply a “government-to-government transaction,” not a personal gift to Trump. “This is a very simple government-to-government dealing,” Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman bin Jassim Al-Thani said Wednesday in an interview with CNN’s Becky Anderson, adding that the matter was “still under legal review.” Al-Thani would not confirm if a Qatari official approached Trump with an offer to help, as Trump suggested in an interview with Fox News. “It is a government-to-government transaction,” Al-Thani said. “It has nothing to do with personnel, whether it’s on the US side or the Qatari side. It’s Ministry of Defense and Department of Defense.” The potential transfer of the jet – which Trump has said would be donated to his library after he leaves office – has been criticized by Democrats and Republicans alike, with some of Trump’s own supporters pointing to the appearance that Qatar is influence peddling. Republican Mike Rounds, a member of the Senate Intelligence Committee, said he has security concerns about the potential acceptance of the Qatari jet, likening it to a modern-day version of the Trojan horse. Another Republican member of that panel, Sen. John Cornyn, said he would also have concerns with Trump accepting the plane.