Trump Gushes Praise For World Leader Who’s Giving Him $400 Million Jet In Meetup On Air Force One
President Donald Trump lavished praise on Qatari leaders during a stopover in the Middle Eastern nation to refuel on his way to Asia to meet with world leaders there, including China’s Xi Jinping.
In May, the United States accepted a $400 million luxury jet from the Qatari royal family for Trump to use as Air Force One. Converting the plane to “Air Force One” security standards is estimated to cost around $1 billion. Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY) called the controversial gift, “a bribe.”
Trump invited Qatar’s Emir and the Prime Minister aboard Air Force One during the refueling process.
“I want to start because you’re in my country, so I want to welcome you Mr. President,” the Emir said while squeezing Trump’s hand. “And as soon as I found out that he’s coming to refuel, I said, I’m not going to allow him to take off unless I come and say hello to him. So thank you very much, Mr. President. And it’s always good to see you.”
“Well, the Emir is one of the great rulers of the world, not just the Middle East,” Trump gushed. “He’s loved, he’ beloved and respected by his country. I don’t know what’s more important, being beloved or respected? Both. You have a preference because you have both. You’re one of the few.”
Trump then turned his attention to the prime minister, who appeared to shy away when Trump reached out to touch him.
“And the prime minister has been my friend and and a friend to the world,” Trump said. “And we’ve done a lot together in the last, especially in the last year. What we’ve done is incredible — peace to the Middle East. And they were a very big factor in it. So I just want to thank you.”
Trump continued, “You don’t do this often — I don’t think he’s ever done this, actually. But it’s it’s an honor. We have a great he’s a great ally. They are a great ally. And these are two great men. And as long as we’re together and you have those cameras rolling, I want to just say we express our thanks. And you have a safe Middle East right now, and you’re going to keep it that way for a long time.”
“We hope so,” the Emir said.
Watch above via CNN.
