WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer said Tuesday that he will hold up all Justice Department nominations on the Senate floor until he gets more answers about the free Air Force One replacement that President Donald Trump says would be donated by Qatar.
Trump said this week that he wants to accept the $400 million plane, and that it would later be donated to a presidential library. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox News on Monday that the details of the donation are still being worked out.
The plan, Schumer said, “is not just naked corruption, it is also a grave national security threat.”
Schumer said he wants answers from Attorney General Pam Bondi and the Trump administration about whether it is investigating activities inside the United States by Qatari foreign agents that could benefit Trump or his business. He also wants to know if Qatar will be responsible for adding security measures to the plane and how it will be built and paid for.
“The Attorney General must testify before both the House and Senate to explain why gifting Donald Trump a private jet does not violate the emoluments clause — which requires congressional approval — or any other ethics laws,” Schumer said.
The Constitution prohibits federal officials from accepting things of value, or "emoluments," from foreign governments without congressional approval.
Democrats have expressed uniform outrage about the potential foreign gift and many Republicans are uneasy about the plan, as well. Returning to Washington on Monday evening, senators in both parties questioned how the deal would work and stressed the importance of following federal laws that govern how a U.S. president can accept gifts from foreign countries.
“We need to look at the constitutionality of it,” said Sen. Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va., who said she’d be concerned about possible spying devices installed on the plane. Republican Sen. James Lankford of Oklahoma said that Trump had said he would follow the law, and “that’s the right answer.”
Republican Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky said Trump shouldn’t accept the jet. “I don’t think it looks good or smells good,” Paul said. Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., said he’d prefer “a big, beautiful jet made in the United States of America.”
On Wednesday, Senate Majority Leader John Thune, R-S.D., declined to give a direct opinion on the possible deal, but said that if it happens, “I can assure you there will be plenty of scrutiny.”
Republican Sen. Markwayne Mullin of Oklahoma defended the idea. “Why would we care if another country wanted to give the United States a gift?” he asked.
In an excerpt of an interview with Fox News’ Sean Hannity scheduled for airing late Tuesday, Trump also questioned the criticism. “My attitude is, why wouldn’t I accept a gift?” Trump said. He said the United States “should have the most impressive plane.”
Schumer’s holds mean that the Senate can’t quickly confirm any of Trump’s Justice Department nominees. Many lower-level nominations, such as U.S. attorneys, are often approved in groups by voice vote.
Democratic Sens. Brian Schatz of Hawaii and Richard Blumenthal of Hawaii went to the Senate floor Tuesday afternoon and tried to force a vote on a resolution disapproving of the Qatari gift. But it was blocked by Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville, who said Democrats are “losing their mind over the situation” and the gift is not a done deal. If the Qatari government does donate the plane, “the only thing we should say is thank you,” Tuberville said.
Schatz said that “it really should go without saying, but no president should be accepting a $400 million gift from a foreign country. It is gross, it is reckless, it is corrupt, and the outrage and condemnation especially on the Republican side should be universal.”
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Associated Press writers Matt Brown, Leah Askarinam and Chris Megerian contributed to this report.
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Credit: AP
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Credit: AP