Democrats in Congress have criticized the president’s plan to accept a $400 million Boeing 747 from Qatar’s royal family to replace Air Force One.
WASHINGTON—A Democratic senator said he will force a vote on arms sales to countries with personal business ties to President Donald Trump after the president
confirmed he’s receiving a plane from Qatar to be used as the new Air Force One.
Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, said that he will seek to block the sale of arms to such countries, including Qatar and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
“I will block any arms sale to a nation that is doing direct personal business with Trump,” Murphy
wrote on social media platform X on May 12. “We should have a full Senate debate and vote. UAE’s investment in Trump crypto and Qatar’s gifting of a plane is nuclear grade graft.”
Democrats in Congress have
criticized Trump for his plan to accept a $400 million Boeing 747 aircraft from the Qatari royal family to replace one of the current Air Force One planes.
Democrats have also
rebuked Trump and his family members—specifically his sons, Donald Trump Jr. and Eric Trump—for plans to accept an investment by a UAE state-backed group in their cryptocurrency
company, World Liberty Financial, which the lawmakers allege is “corruption” and foreign influence-peddling.
Trump is traveling to the Middle East this week, stopping in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the UAE, where he is
expected to announce arms deals.
Normally, arms sales are not voted on in Congress, but any senator can force a vote by denying unanimous consent on the motion. A denial of unanimous consent means the Senate will take more time to approve these sales.
“Any Senator can object and force a full debate and Senate vote. I will do that for any military deal with a nation that is paying off Trump personally. We can’t act like this is normal foreign policy,” Murphy
wrote in a subsequent social media post.
The United States has longstanding military ties to both nations. Qatar allows the U.S. Air Force to use Al-Udeid Air Base to project power in the Middle East, making it the largest U.S. military base in the region. The UAE
provides “critical logistical support” to U.S. Navy vessels entering the Persian Gulf, making it the largest naval port outside the United States, according to the U.S. State Department.
Foreign military sales to both Qatar and the UAE total $26.3 billion and $29 billion, respectively.
The diplomatic missions of both countries to the United States did not respond to a request for comment by publication time.
Trump has defended his plan to accept the 747 jet from Qatar, signaling that he has no financial interest in the transaction.
“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,” Trump
wrote on his Truth Social platform on May 11.
