Trump accepts jet from Qatar, will refit to serve as Air Force One, DOD says

President Donald Trump has officially accepted Qatar’s Boeing 747 pitchy acquisition to beryllium refitted arsenic Air Force One, the Pentagon revealed. 

"The Secretary of Defense has accepted a Boeing 747 from Qatar successful accordance with each national rules and regulations," main spokesperson Sean Parnell confirmed to Fox News. "The Department of Defense volition enactment to guarantee due information measures and functional-mission requirements are considered for an craft utilized to transport the President of the United States. For further information, we notation you to the United States Air Force."

News of the woody had prompted concerns from lawmakers, some implicit however to retrofit a overseas nation’s level to service arsenic a mobile Oval Office with the highest levels of information and implicit what Qatar mightiness privation from Trump successful instrumentality for the gift. 

Trump state Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, had said the level poses "significant espionage and surveillance problems" portion liberals similar Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., declared, "Trump cannot judge a $400 cardinal flying palace from the royal household of Qatar. Not lone is this farcically corrupt, it is blatantly unconstitutional."

"Qatar is not, successful my opinion, a large ally. I mean, they enactment Hamas. So what I'm disquieted astir is the information of the president," Sen. Rick Scott, R-Fla., told reporters past week. 

Trump had responded to the criticisms: "So the information that the Defense Department is getting a GIFT, FREE OF CHARGE, of a 747 craft to regenerate the 40 twelvemonth aged Air Force One, temporarily, successful a precise nationalist and transparent transaction, truthful bothers the Crooked Democrats that they importune we pay, TOP DOLLAR, for the plane," Trump wrote. "Anybody tin bash that! The Dems are World Class Losers!!! MAGA."

Trump successful 2018 awarded Boeing a $3.9 cardinal fixed-price statement to manufacture 2 caller jets, aft months of haggling implicit the price. The jets were expected to beryllium delivered successful 2024, but the task is astir 5 years down docket and already $2.5 cardinal implicit budget. 

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