Trump caught in major corruption scheme

Even for Trump, the overt corruption is staggering.

Donald Trump is poised to accept a $400 million "gift" from Qatar in the form of a luxury Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet – a plane so opulent it's known as a "palace in the sky" - that will ultimately serve as Air Force One. Ownership will then be transferred to the Trump presidential library foundation before he leaves office. Simply put, a foreign government is giving the President of the United States a personal gift worth $400 million. This isn't a state gift that will remain government property; this is a gift that will ultimately become Trump's personal property. This is the definition of foreign influence buying.

And the timing, I must say, is quite interesting, in that it was just days ago that Trump's press secretary Karoline Leavitt had a fainting spell in the press briefing room when a reporter dared suggest that Trump might be acting for his own benefit:

"I think it's frankly ridiculous that anyone in this room would even suggest that President Trump is doing anything for his own benefit." Those were her exact words. Who would like to tell Leavitt that accepting a $400 million luxury jet from a foreign government that will eventually become your boss's personal property is the definition of acting for his own benefit?

The Constitution's emoluments clause explicitly prohibits U.S. officials from accepting gifts "from any King, Prince, or foreign State." The framers included the provision because they understood the danger of foreign influence. They knew that gifts from foreign powers could compromise the independence of American officials and undermine the national interest. Yes, Trump's willingness to accept this "gift" shows a complete disregard for these fundamental principles, but it’s also unconstitutional. Cue: the Department of Justice.

Attorney General Pam Bondi – herself a Trump loyalist who previously took campaign contributions from Trump while deciding whether to investigate Trump University (she decided not to pursue charges— shocker, I know) has conveniently decided this arrangement is "legally permissible." Her department is claiming that it's allowed because the gift is technically going to the Air Force first, and then later to Trump's library foundation – not directly to Trump himself. In other words, an attorney general whose aligned PAC accepted a $25,000 donation from Trump while deciding whether to prosecute Trump University for fraud as Florida AG, has decided to permit Trump to accept a $400 million gift from Qatar, a country she lobbied on behalf of to the tune of $115,000 per month. As they say: Drain The Swamp™. Or something.

It goes without saying, but this brand of legal gymnastics would get laughed out of any first-year law school class. The emoluments clause exists precisely to prevent foreign governments from purchasing influence from American officials. The technical ownership structure doesn't change the fact that Qatar is giving a $400 million asset that will ultimately benefit Trump personally. Trump knows that. Bondi knows that. They will pretend otherwise because their priority isn’t defending the office, but rather maximizing the degree to which they can exploit it for personal gain.

What’s worse is that this isn't happening in isolation. Trump's cryptocurrency scheme has been revealed to be overwhelmingly purchased by foreign buyers. According to financial analysis, foreign investors have poured hundreds of millions into Trump's digital coins – yet another avenue for foreign governments and interests to funnel money directly to Trump.

The President of the United States is quite literally selling access and influence to the highest bidder. Qatar isn't giving a $400 million jet out of the goodness of their hearts – they expect something in return. That's how transactional relationships work, and nobody understands transactional relationships better than Donald Trump. What exactly is Qatar buying with this $400 million "gift"? Access? Influence? Favorable trade terms? Military protection? We don't know, and that's precisely the problem. When foreign governments can simply purchase the president's favor with luxury gifts, American interests take a backseat to the president's personal enrichment.