Former top Trump official Rep. Ryan Zinke (R-MT) awkwardly tried to laugh off a grilling from CNN anchor Pamela Brown with a limp joke about the $400 million plane President Donald Trump is getting from Qatar.
The political media has been dominated by the bombshell news that the president will accept a luxurious $400 million “flying palace” to serve as Air Force One until it is transferred — at taxpayer expense — to his presidential library.
Trump and his administration insist it’s not “bribery,” while critics from every quarter — including staunch MAGA allies like Ben Shapiro, Laura Loomer, and Eric Erickson — have denounced the move.
On Tuesday’s edition of CNN’s The Situation Room, Zinke took a different tack, attempting to deflect Brown — four times — with a jokey exclamation about the expense of the plane as she tried to get him to address ethical concerns.
Zinke also insisted that the gift is “legal and ethical” because “it went through Pam Bondi” — who was a lobbyist for Qatar before becoming Trump’s attorney general:
BROWN: So, I want to go to something else that, as you know, has been a talk, and that is President Trump saying he wants to accept this gift, this grand gesture from Qatar, this luxury jet. You even have some Trump allies, like Laura Loomer and Ben Shapiro, are against it, even saying if this was Hunter Biden or Joe Biden, we would be going crazy right now. Even some
Republicans in Congress have been speaking out against it. What do you think?ZINKE: It must be one heck of a jet(LAUGHS) you know, because, you know, I was with President Trump and, you know, the current aircraft has aged. Remember, during this first couple months in office, he went to Boeing and said, look, you’re charging us too much. It’s going to take too long. He cut a deal with Boeing. Where’s the plane? And all of a sudden, he sees this plane, and I understand it went through Pam Bondi, so it’s legal, it’s ethical.Does it give the right message? Well, I hope Boeing looks up and goes, look, you know, I got to deliver, but, I got to say it must be one heck of an aircraft. (LAUGHS)BROWN: Well, just to follow up on that, because ethics experts are very concerned. They’re concerned that it could be considered a bribe. And when you were on the show with me a couple months ago, you said, look, I believe in the Constitution, and as you know, the Constitution says, no office holder may accept a gift from a foreign state without congressional approval.Why should Trump be allowed to take this plane? Do you have any issues with that?ZINKE: Well, I don’t think it’s a personal gift. I think it’s government to government.BROWN: But isthat a work around the library after?ZINKE: Well, we’ll see where it goes.BROWN: So, what do you think? Are you for it, against it? Where do you stand? Do you have any ethics concerns or constitutional concerns?ZINKE: Well, I’m glad Pam Bondi stepped in and looked at it from a legal point of view, which is helpful. You know, again, I’ll go back, this must be one heck of a plane. Because, you know, he was on Air Force One, I’ve been on Air Force One. To me, it’s a nice plane, evidently. Remember who President Trump is. He’s a billionaire businessman from New York. He doesn’t sleep in a sleep mat (ph) overnight.BROWN: Understood. But even if it’s a really nice plane, and he has a plane, that doesn’t take away the other ethics and –ZINKE: But I can see the point, too, that is it a good look? Is it a good look to have a Qatari aircraft that now is the president –BROWN: Do you have concerns? I mean, you were a former Navy SEAL. Do you have concerns about the fact that even President Trump has said Qatari has had relations with terrorist group Hamas, which is why Laura Loomer and others were speaking out, and that this would have to be completely stripped down to make sure there aren’tany bugs or spy gear, or anything in it?ZINKE: Oh, no doubt, they’re going to go through this like a fine tooth. You know, they’re going to go through everything. But I understand, you know, our aircraft, is it a better aircraft? It must be.Now, to your point, does it provide a leverage over the Qataris? I don’t think so with this president, but, you know, he’s making deals and he I think it’s transactional to him. He looks at it and goes, hey, it’s a better airplane. His comment was, you’d be stupid not to take it.I think that’s from a business point of view, because he is a business guy. He goes out and, you know, he’s making deals everywhere and he’s Mr. Deal-Maker there.BROWN: There’s a difference between being a private businessman and being a president.
Watch above via CNN’s The Situation Room.