Qatar lobbyist and creature from the black lagoon Pam Blondie disagrees with you.

For a second, I thought maybe I was too young to get the reference there to the "black lagoon," but I think I've decided you're referring to the totally full and not even close to anyone draining it "swamp."

She says it's permissible.

I would sure like to see on what basis she bases her unconstitutional opinion that obviously omits the multiple laws it would violate, and it seems Dick Durbin would also and has written to her to investigate:

On May 11, President Trump confirmed reports that his Administration is in the process of receiving a luxury jet worth approximately $400 million from the royal family of Qatar for temporary use as Air Force One, before the jet would be permanently gifted to the Trump Presidential Library Foundation, potentially for President Trump’s continued use after his term ends.1 Moreover, President Trump confirmed reports of this gift mere weeks after his family reached a deal for a Trump-branded luxury golf resort in Qatar as part of a $5.5 billion project that will be built in partnership with a Qatari state-owned developer.2

As reported, this gift clearly violates the Constitution and the statutory regime enacted by Congress to govern such gifts.3 The Constitution unequivocally bestows on Congress the power to control whether any officer of the United States, including the President, may accept a gift “from any King, Prince, or foreign State.”4

Durbin's Correspondence to Attorney General

*
It isn't only a violation of the United States Constitution, it's additionally against the law as set forth in 5 United States Code 7342.

Qatar lobbyist and creature from the black lagoon Pam Blondie disagrees with you. She says it's permissible.

Ripley (to Jonesy): "And you, you little shit-head... you're staying here."

Wait a minute did you just call me a little shithead???

:D

Since I have been accepted into the Academy, I have got roughly 8 months to get into shape for the PAT.. :D

I got a professional body builder deputy friend of mine to be my trainer.. He is very mean! :D hehehehe

CW, I look forward to your comments from the TRUMP BACKS DOWN commentary..

Just giving you a fair heads up.. It got pretty intense..

But I hope you read them all to allow you the proper context..

Espeically HERE and HERE

Any who... See ya in about 56 hours or so.. :D

i mean really, it's like he's got someone flipping through the Constitution with a sharpie, going, "due process, check. habeas corpus, check. emoluments, haven't tried that one in awhile. bill of attainder, check. titles of nobility sound interesting, maybe let's try that one next...."

Exactly! Well said. Somebody flip that open for Trump to Article II, Section 4.

Please explain how this isn't a violation of the emoluments clause of the Constitution. How on Earth has Pam Bondi determined this doesn't constitute bribery? Probably the same way she determined that in his first 100 days Donald Trump "saved — are you ready for this, media? — 258 million lives."

Nothing says "America First" like a used plane being accepted by the President of the United States (inconsiderate moron) who's putting his own personal interests before those of the country. I think it would be infinitely interesting at this juncture to hear from the "Obama wore a tan suit" crowing GOP wingnuts to give us their thoughts on how this 13-year-old hand-me-down Qatari plane looks on Trump. He and his lawyers and AG cannot be this stupid; however, Trump is definitely greedy enough to attempt to launder a personal gift (grift) for himself through the office of the presidency.

How does this not end up being one of the answers to CW's McLaughlin awards later this year? The sad answer is: Trump does something even more openly unconstitutional in order to enrich himself. You know, like having a meme coin he sells to foreigners and pockets the money personally.

So, have your commentary is simply not relevant to the actual facts..

If it's going to be part of the PRESIDENTIAL LIBRARY and then given to PRESIDENT Trump when he leaves office..

I don't see any problems because the plane will NEVER be AIR FORCE ONE...

Democrats should remember that when they hysterically want to protect muslims from being "persecuted"... :^/ I'm just saying....

"You talk about women and women's rights? So these are people that push gays off buildings. These are people that kill women and treat women horribly. And yet you take their money." These complaints merely scratch the surface of the wrongness of accepting this plane, but they are relevant because they are all quotes from Donald Trump himself, castigating Hillary Clinton for accepting contributions to the Clinton Foundation from Qatar and other Middle Eastern countries.

And yet, Democrats are STILL hysterical about protecting muslim's "rights"...

And (since you bring it up) WHY is it OK for Clinton to accept tens of millions of dollars from Qatar but it's NOT OK for PRESIDENT Trump to get a nice new airplane??

And, since we're on the subject.. Who here still pronounces it as Quatar instead of the ridiculous way "Gutter"???

That will make it easier to reference what yer responding to..

So, thanx for that.. :D

ok, can't deal with that, either.

Later, later... hopefully... going to watch late-night TV now...

-CW

on to 5/12 (yesterday) -

oh I should mention, I'm embedding permalinks in the numbers (the comment numbers) in these responses... but they're kinda too small to show up, sorry, just hover over the number and click to see what I'm responding too... sorry for being lazy...

-CW

Don't forget... I DID vote for Odumbo in 2008.. :D

Michale [7] -

Ripley (to Jonesy): "And you, you little shit-head... you're staying here."

:D

And because I am in a good mood I am going to ignore the fact that you quoted (ugh!) Tom Cruise as Reacher. The TV show's so much better...

In my defense, I DID specify it as (FAUX) JACK REACHER

:D

Just a heads up... Yesterdays discussion got a little intense.. :D

Oooo! Nice classic SNL reference... I like it!

:-)

-CW

It's a FASCINATING study.. Although there isn't a single specific term in psychology for people who SO intensely hates a person and cannot stop thinking about or talking about them, the behavior can be described using several concepts.

There oughta be a name for it.. :D

I'd call it "living rent-free in their minds"... y'know... kinda like you and Obama (or Biden, or Hillary, or whomever)...

(heh)

-CW

And because I am in a good mood I am going to ignore the fact that you quoted (ugh!) Tom Cruise as Reacher. The TV show's so much better...

-CW

OK, that went a long way towards rehabilitation, at least with me. here, I will give you something you'll like, in return...

Ripley (to Jonesy): "And you, you little shit-head... you're staying here."

-CW

MtnCaddy [3] -

"Yes I think we’re getting close to the do Republicans fear Trump more than they fear their Constituents phase of this process."

that is an excellent way to describe it. Not sure we're quite there yet, but well-framed, just had to say that.

-CW

-CW

My sentiments exactly!

Planespotters

(although it should definitely surprise no one if it subsequently disappears).

It's already listed as belonging to the United States Air Force, and a Boeing 747-8 with the same coloring of white, gray and burgundy as other planes flown by the royal family of Qatar was observed outside the ST Engineering giant orange hangars at San Antonio International with the tail number hidden.

So, yes, this is likely something Trump has already accepted and sent for retrofitting; I cannot imagine otherwise why else it would be there at that location.

As a friendly reminder: All the rest of you ladies and germs are hereby limited to two (2) dolls -- yes, a GI Joe is a doll -- and/or five (5) pencils. Now drop and give me twenty (20).

it seemed like such a big deal back then that Donald refused to divest from companies that were doing business with foreign governments. what a difference eight years make.

As you say, the plane will have to be rebuilt from scratch to make it usable as Air Force One - the very reason that Boeing is currently building dedicated aircraft for the president's use a few years down the road. Nothing - but NOTHING - is off-the-shelf or standard parts for this plane. It's all custom construction and installation, from start to finish. I'm sure the president doesn't understand this and wouldn't care less if he did; he just sees a 'free' high-class airliner for him to own and fly in for the rest of his life.

Rest of his life? Oh....

Another political blog, electoral vote dot com, had this to say on that last front:

"...there's also another possibility that nobody seems to be saying out loud. Thanks to Trump himself, we now know it's possible to build a kill switch into a plane that can be remotely activated. There is no way that such a thing, buried deep in the plane's software, could ever be detected. And it's not at all impossible that the Iranians could call up their clients, the Qataris, and tell them to down the presidential plane and throw the U.S. government into chaos.

"Coupled with the abuse of the emoluments clause, all of this might be a bridge too far. The members of Congress might not be too enthusiastic to pay for modifications that are not going to be fully effective, and that are for a plane that might only get a year or two of presidential use (and then would have to be modified again, to remove the classified stuff).

"Further, few people have a more finely honed instinct for self-preservation than Donald J. Trump. So, someone might get to him and impress upon him that every time he flew on the Qatari plane as president, he would potentially be taking his life into his hands. Of course, he's a credulous fellow who is easily manipulated into thinking that autocratic leaders are his best buddies, so maybe he won't be open to considering this risk."

It's an airplane bribe from a jihadi country. I can harly wait!