One of president Donald Trump's consistent defenders on CNN spoke out against him accepting Qatar's gift of a luxury jet.
The $400 million "flying palace" raises constitutional, legal and ethical concerns, and political strategist Shermichael Singleton told "CNN News Central" on Wednesday that the Qatari royal family's gift represents a national security threat.
"I wouldn't trust it," Singleton said. "I wouldn't even trust a jet from an ally, to be quite honest with you, because we know everybody is in the business of trying to get as much information as they possibly can, particularly from the United States and so, yeah, I guess I hear [Sen.] Josh Hawley saying maybe you can sweep the plane."
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Boeing was supposed to deliver a replacement for Air Force One last year, but the aircraft maker has run into significant delays that has cost the company billions of dollars and frustrated the president, who has said he's "not happy" about the holdup and threatened to purchase a plane elsewhere.
"We can build stuff in the United States of America, let's do that," Singleton said. "Now look, it's a bit appalling that it's taken Boeing so freaking long to build a plane with the proper technology for the president to be safe. I mean, I have no clue why the hell this is taking so long."
Military officials and lawmakers have warned that a private contractor would be required to dismantle the plane down to the studs to turn the jet into a flying White House with secure communications and classified upgrades, which would likely cost taxpayers millions of dollars.
"The idea of taking a plane from the Qataris or anybody else, for that matter, to me, it's just really a national security threat," Singleton said. "I just would not feel comfortable with the president or any other president, for that matter, having to rely on a plane gifted by another nation. I would just be too concerned about the national security threat to the president."
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