Why Qatar is Bribing Trump

Our forthcoming book is The Comeback: The 2024 Elections and American Politics. The second Trump administration is off to an ominous start.  Its corruption is unprecedented.  Qatar's gift of a jet is just one example.

Judd Legum:

Appearing Monday on Fox News, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that she was "absolutely" sure that Qatar did not "want something in return" for the $400 million 747 airplane because "because they know President Trump and they know he only works with the interests of the American public in mind."

This is not a credible position.

Qatar is the second-largest purchaser of U.S. military equipment, just behind Saudi Arabia, and has a keen interest in ongoing access to high-tech weaponry. In March, the Trump administration "approved the sale of eight MQ-9B Predator drones and a large package of bombs and missiles to Qatar in a deal valued at nearly $2 billion." Arming Qatar with advanced unmanned aircraft, a development that may not be welcomed by all of its neighbors, marked a policy shift for the United States. Included in the deal were "200 Joint Direct Attack Munitions, 300 500-pound general-purpose bombs, 110 Hellfire II missiles, [and] Seaspray 7500 maritime radars." These transfers can be controversial due to Qatar's ties with several radical groups, including political and financial support for Hamas.

Qatar is also home to Al-Udeid Air Base, "the largest U.S. military facility in the Middle East" with about 13,000 American troops. The presence of the base serves as a security umbrella for the country and enhances its diplomatic stature in the region. Qatar has spent about $1.8 billion to modernize the facility, reflecting its commitment to a long-term American presence.

Speaking to reporters on Monday, Trump acknowledged the relationship between Qatar's gift and security guarantees. He said that Qatar offered him the plane because the United States "kept them safe."

Open Corruption

Our forthcoming book is The Comeback: The 2024 Elections and American Politics. The second Trump administration is off to an ominous start.  Its corruption is unprecedented.

Karen DeYoung, Natalie Allison and Mariana Alfaro at WP:

Qatar is discussing donating an aircraft to the U.S. government for President Donald Trump to use temporarily, but no final agreement has been reached, according to Qatar’s media attaché to the United States. The subject remains in talks between lawyers at the U.S. Defense Department and Qatar’s Defense Ministry.

While the deal is not final, ethics experts are raising concerns about the possible donation from a foreign government, which they say would be unconstitutional, violating the emoluments clause, which forbids U.S. officials from accepting gifts or other things of value from foreign officials without congressional approval.

Trump appeared to confirm the discussions in a social media post Sunday evening, criticizing those who say that Washington should pay for the plane. He said the Pentagon would be receiving the 747 aircraft free to use temporarily as an Air Force One plane.

Eric Lipton and David Yaffe-Bellany at NYT:

The sale of face-to-face access to President Trump using the Trump family’s own cryptocurrency has done more than benefit him financially, though it has certainly done that.

Mr. Trump announced last month that leading buyers of a digital coin his family is marketing would be rewarded with a private dinner with him at one of his golf courses and that the very top bidders would win a tour of the White House.

The auction, which ends Monday, has set off a spectacle that has drawn bipartisan criticism, triggered a suspicious trading pattern, and left a sitting United States president wide open to attempts to corruptly influence him.

Since the announcement, crypto investors around the world have raced to expand their holdings of $TRUMP — a digital currency called a memecoin, which is typically treated more as a novelty investment than an actual currency.

 Certain buyers, in interviews and statements, have said they bought the coins or entered the dinner contest with the intention of securing an action by Mr. Trump to affect United States policy.

...

The contest has presented a straightforward opportunity for foreign-based investors to interact with the president. Under federal law, noncitizens are barred from donating to political campaigns. But nothing stops them from buying a $TRUMP memecoin.

In Mexico, Javier Selgas, the chief executive of a transportation logistics company, announced last month that he intended to buy $20 million worth of $TRUMP tokens to try to convince Mr. Trump to lower tariffs targeting Mexico, which would benefit his company. (After the announcement drew international attention, a spokesman said the firm “currently does not have plans” to send a representative to Mr. Trump’s dinner.)

The Best People

 Our forthcoming book is The Comeback: The 2024 Elections and American Politics. The second Trump administration is off to an ominous start.  MAGA people (e.g., Hegseth) have replaced the normals (e.g., Mattis) that populated the first Trump administration.

Jessica Glenza at The Guardian:

Donald Trump nominated Casey Means, a wellness influencer and medical doctor with an inactive license for US surgeon general this week – his second nominee to serve as “the nation’s doctor”.

Trump abruptly withdrew his first nominee, Dr Janette Nesheiwat, before her Senate confirmation hearing, amid criticism from the right and confusion about her medical credentials.

His new nominee, Means, is a 37-year-old Los Angeles-based medical entrepreneur who shot to prominence in right-leaning wellness circles by criticizing mainstream medicine and advocating for a healthier food supply.

...

 “We should not toss out the window everything Casey is saying, but I would proceed with caution given her training,” said Prof Gabby Headrick, as assistant professor and director of nutrition programs at George Washington University’s Milken School of Public Health.

“Typically and historically, the person appointed to that role and confirmed is someone who has an active medical license, someone who has completed residency, and has held a leadership role in a medical institution. Casey Means does not have the resumé … She also is not trained in nutrition.”

Means also faces opposition from the far right. Activist Laura Loomer, who was critical of Trump’s first nominee, is skeptical of Means – calling her “unfit” for surgeon general and promoting events with Means’s critics.

Loomer previously described Nesheiwat as “a pro-Covid vaccine nepo appointee who is currently embroiled in a medical malpractice case”. Covid vaccines and the technology that underpins them have become a target of right-leaning politicians.

Paul Schwartzman, Spencer S. Hsu and Jeremy Barr at WP:

Jeanine Pirro, the Fox News host chosen by President Donald Trump to become interim U.S. attorney in D.C., is the archetype of what he has shown to prefer in his appointees: combative, camera-ready and loyal enough to have sought to discredit the results of the 2020 election that he lost.

Yet Pirro, a former New York judge and prosecutor, also possesses enough political baggage that she is sure to provoke fierce partisan debate if Trump nominates her as the permanent leader of the nation’s largest U.S. attorney’s office.

Less than 24 hours after Trump announced Pirro’s appointment, hailing her as “incredibly well qualified,” Democrats and Republicans staked out vastly divergent positions on her looming arrival in Washington. She’ll replace the president’s first interim choice, Ed Martin, who is departing after 15 turbulent weeks in office.

Rich Shapiro at NBC:

Long before she was a Fox News host who pushed pro-Trump election conspiracy theories, Jeanine Pirro was an ambitious New York politician whose career stalled after she was recorded plotting to bug her then-husband’s boat to catch him in an affair.

The revelation rocked Pirro’s campaign for New York attorney general nearly 20 years ago, resulting in days of front-page headlines in the city’s tabloids (“BUG THIS LOVE BOAT!” blared the Daily News cover).

The conversation took place in 2005 between Pirro and the former commissioner of the New York Police Department, Bernard Kerik, a close ally of Rudy Giuliani’s.

“What am I supposed to do, Bernie? Watch him f--- her every night?” Pirro said, according to a transcript obtained by WNBC-TV’s Jonathan Dienst in 2006. “What am I supposed to do? I can go on the boat. I’ll put the f-----g thing on myself.”

Peter Aitken at Newsweek:

Pirro is the 23rd current or former Fox News employee Trump has recruited for his administration since taking office earlier this year. However, his relationship with the network runs far deeper and longer than just this year nominees.

During his first administration, Trump regularly called Fox News hosts live on air to have impromptu, off-the-cuff interviews. He also allegedly would consult any number of hosts off the air, including Fox News powerhouse Sean Hannity.

Trump, however, decided to elevate that special relationship in his second administration by appointing hosts, many of whom have only ever had glowing praise for Trump during their broadcasts, to key Cabinet positions and high-profile roles. Comedian and TV host Bill Maher quipped on Friday night during Real Time with Bill Maher that "I've heard of state-run TV; this is TV run state."

A Millionaire Tax?

 Our forthcoming book is The Comeback: The 2024 Elections and American Politics.  It includes a discussion of tax issues.

Trump has reportedly floated the idea of raising taxes on the wealthiest Americans. Emily Brooks at The Hill:

Americans for Tax Reform President Grover Norquist, who has long worked to have politicians sign pledges to not raise taxes, said that Trump called him to ask his opinion about the matter on Wednesday.

“I told him I thought that it was a job killer, that it was bad for the economy, that it was political death,” Norquist said, reminding him of the many times he promised to make the 2017 tax cuts permanent. And suggestions from staff to the contrary, Norquist said, would not serve him politically.

“That’s what Darman did to Bush,” Norquist said, referencing the Office of Management and Budget director for former President George H.W. Bush — who lost reelection after making the promise, “Read my lips: no new taxes,” before agreeing to tax increases.

“That’s kind of a disgusting thing for a staffer to do to a president, is to tell him to go out and change his mind and say, ‘Oh, I lied when I ran for office,’” Norquist added.

Trump referenced the infamous Bush quote in a Truth Social post on Friday when he said Republicans should “probably not” raise on those pulling multi-million-dollar incomes, musing that Democrats could use it against Republicans.

But Trump also said it was not that broken promise that lost Bush in 1992: “NO, Ross Perot cost him the Election!” Trump said, referencing the independent presidential candidate who pulled nearly 19 percent of the popular vote.

 

Along with Newt, Grover has been warning against this move for some time. 

Leo XIV on Trump and Vance

Our forthcoming book is The Comeback: The 2024 Elections and American Politics. 

Zach Kessel and Jon Levine at The Washington Free Beacon

Pope Leo XIV, formerly known as Robert Prevost, voted in several Republican primaries before being elevated as successor to Pope Francis, election records obtained by the Washington Free Beacon show.

Leo XIV, who previously lived in Chicago, voted in Republican primaries during the 2012, 2014, and 2016 election cycles, according to records from conservative polling firm Pulse Decision Science.

Illinois does not allow voters to register with a political party, so the pope’s voting record does not mean he was a registered Republican. The records do, however, indicate that he only voted in primary elections on the GOP side.

Federal Election Commission and Illinois State Board of Elections databases do not list the newly elected pope as having donated to any political campaigns.

Matt Knee, Pulse Decision Science’s chief data officer, told the Free Beacon the pope’s voting history and public pronouncements lead him to believe Leo XIV is a former Republican.

"The fact that he hasn’t voted in a Republican primary since 2016 and, in fact, didn’t vote in the general in ‘16—and his public statements—if I had to guess, he certainly would fit the profile of a former or Never Trump-type ex-Republican," Knee said.

 Isaac Schorr at Mediaite:

Pope Leo XIV’s social media presence is causing quite the stir.

Shortly after news broke that he had been selected as the new pontiff, observers began scouring over his X account for clues as to his leanings.

It wouldn’t take Sherlock Holmes to decipher them. His last post on the platform was a retweet that read “As Trump & Bukele use Oval to 🤣 Feds’ illicit deportation of a US resident (https://bit.ly/3ROMjnP), once an undoc-ed Salvadorean himself, now-DC Aux +Evelio asks, ‘Do you not see the suffering? Is your conscience not disturbed? How can you stay quiet?'”

A few posts down, Leo XIV shared articles about Vice President JD Vance’s explanation of ordo amoris, one of which bore the headline “JD Vance is wrong: Jesus doesn’t ask us to rank our love for others.”

 

JD Vance is wrong: Jesus doesn't ask us to rank our love for others https://t.co/hDKPKuMXmu via @NCRonline

— Robert Prevost (@drprevost) February 3, 2025

As a result, President Donald Trump’s most faithful fans online are not taking to the new pope especially well. “THIS IS THE NEW POPE!” wrote Laura Loomer, the self-proclaimed “white nationalist” with considerable influence on the president. “His name is Robert Prevost. He’s the first American Pope. He is anti-Trump, anti-MAGA, pro-open Borders, and a total Marxist like Pope Francis. Catholics don’t have anything good to look forward to. Just another Marxist puppet in the Vatican”

Trump's New York Endorsements

Our forthcoming book is The Comeback: The 2024 Elections and American Politics. It includes a chapter on congressional and state elections.

David Freedlander at New York:

President Donald Trump waded into the murky waters of New York Republican politics on Wednesday, when, seemingly out of the blue, he posted two “Truths” to the social-media site he owns. In the first, he gave his “Complete and Total Endorsement” to the reelection of Nassau County Executive Bruce Blakeman, a MAGA die-hard who has thrilled the Republican faithful with his culture-war battles on immigration and transgender-athlete bans. In the second, he gave a Complete and Total Endorsement to Mike Lawler, the Hudson Valley congressman who is one of only three Republican members of Congress representing districts that Kamala Harris won last year.

Not endorsed was Elise Stefanik, the North Country Republican congresswoman who reluctantly returned to the House after Trump pulled her nomination to be ambassador to the United Nations in order to preserve the Republicans’ slender majority in the chamber.

All three have been making moves to run for governor, and so to most Republicans in New York, this was seen as a clear effort to sideline at least Lawler and clear a path for Stefanik to win the nomination. But Republican operatives in the state say that it is not so simple and that Trump’s posts — which he made himself, without telling aides — were more about Republicans holding on to the House.

The Senate Map

Our forthcoming book is The Comeback: The 2024 Elections and American Politics. It includes a chapter on congressional and state elections.

Adam Wren, Rachael Bade and Lisa Kashinsky at Politico:

Brian Kemp’s decision not to run for Senate isn’t just a setback for Republicans in Georgia. It is the latest sign that the GOP’s prospects across the Senate map are far less certain than just a few months ago.

It could turn worse, too, as President Donald Trump’s tariffs cause global market chaos ahead of next year’s midterms and a cloudy economic picture comes into fuller view.

Republicans are still widely expected to keep the Senate. But after Kemp and former New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu rejected GOP recruitment efforts — and with hardline conservative Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton primarying the establishment Sen. John Cornyn — the GOP is bracing for a more turbulent cycle than once expected.

That’s not to mention other brewing challenges in Louisiana and North Carolina, where MAGA figures are threatening primaries against longtime incumbents.

Bonkers

Our forthcoming book is The Comeback: The 2024 Elections and American Politics. The second Trump administration is off to an ominous start.

Eric Garcia at The Independent:

President Donald Trump made a series of increasingly erratic posts throughout his weekend at his Palm Beach estate. The first one came late Friday evening when he posted an AI image of himself as the Pope after he had previously joked that he would like to replace the late Pope Francis.

Then on Sunday, Trump threatened to impose 100 percent tariffs on foreign films, supposedly to save the American film industry and address an unexpected “security threat.”

“This is a concerted effort by other Nations and, therefore, a National Security threat. It is, in addition to everything else, messaging and propaganda,” Trump said on Truth Social.

Lastly, late in the evening, Trump entertained the idea of re-opening Alcatraz, the notorious former prison on an island off the coast of San Francisco, which closed in 1963 – largely because it was too expensive to operate, according to the Bureau of Prisons.

...

It later emerged that a local TV station in Florida, where Trump was at the time, had broadcast the Clint Eastwood movie Escape From Alcatraz, shortly before the president’s statement about the famous prison.

As if that weren’t enough, the official White House X account commemorated May 4th, Star Wars Day, with an image of Trump with a lightsaber, though, tellingly with a red blade, the color of the villainous Sith lords.

This came the same weekend that Trump had a largely disastrous interview with Meet The Press’s Kristen Welker, wherein he said he did not know if he had to uphold the US Constitution as his administration conducts its mass deportation strategy.

In the same interview, Trump repeated his threat to annex Greenland through military force. He also brushed off fears about a recession ignited by his trade war with China.

Where does Trump's latest BS — reopening Alcatraz, casting himself as the next pope, and not saying whether it's his job to uphold the Constitution — land on Jon Stewart's "OK or Not OK" chart? pic.twitter.com/1hTym9ndr0

— The Daily Show (@TheDailyShow) May 6, 2025

Legal Incompetence

Our forthcoming book is The Comeback: The 2024 Elections and American Politics. The second Trump administration is off to an ominous start.

Mark Berman and Jeremy Roebuck at WP:

Justice Department lawyers defending the Trump administration’s policies are encountering mounting criticism and frustration from federal judges, a sign of deepening tension between the executive branch and courts weighing its aggressive uses of power.

In recent hearings and rulings, judges appointed by presidents of both parties have criticized the statements and behavior of administration officials, accusing them of defying court orders, submitting flimsy evidence, providing inadequate answers to questions and even acting like toddlers.

The cases involve lawsuits challenging everything from President Donald Trump’s push to increase deportations to his efforts to punish law firms. Most are in the early stages of litigation. But the judicial pushback suggests a break from the goodwill courts have traditionally shown toward assertions by government lawyers.

The “deference that judges would give to attorneys from Main Justice is evaporating,” said John E. Jones III, a former federal judge in Pennsylvania appointed to the bench by President George W. Bush. Justice Department lawyers, he added, have “lost a fair measure of their credibility.”

At a hearing in D.C. last week about law firms, U.S. District Judge John D. Bates seemed unimpressed by some of the Justice Department lawyer’s answers, responding at one point: “Oh, give me a break.”

U.S. District Judge Beryl A. Howell was similarly skeptical Friday as she ruled Trump’s actions against a different law firm were unconstitutional, writing that Justice Department lawyer Richard Lawson, “when asked, was unable to fill in basic details” about the sanctions.

In Virginia, a judge scoffed at evidence the government offered in an immigration case in March to claim one couple were members of a violent gang. “I expect more from the government than this kind of very shoddy work,” U.S. District Judge Leonie M. Brinkema told the Justice Department lawyer, adding that if it were a criminal case, “I’d throw you out of my chambers.”

Trump on Abiding by the Constitution: "I Don't Know"

 Our forthcoming book is The Comeback: The 2024 Elections and American Politics. The second Trump administration is off to an ominous start.

Amanda Terkel and Lawrence Hurley at NBC:

In an interview last month with “Meet the Press,” Secretary of State Marco Rubio said, “Yes, of course,” when asked whether every person in the United States is entitled to due process.

Trump, however, isn’t so sure.

“I don’t know. I’m not, I’m not a lawyer. I don’t know,” Trump replied when asked by “Meet the Press” moderator Kristen Welker whether he agreed with Rubio. His comments came during a wide-ranging interview at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida, which aired Sunday.

The Constitution’s Fifth Amendment says “no person” shall be “deprived of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law”; it does not say that person must be a U.S. citizen, and the Supreme Court has long recognized that noncitizens have certain basic rights. Trump has also said that while “we always have to obey the laws,” he would like to see some “homegrown criminals” sent to El Salvador as well, a proposal that was widely panned by legal experts.

When Welker tried to point out what the Fifth Amendment said, Trump suggested that such a process would slow him down too much.

“I don’t know. It seems — it might say that, but if you’re talking about that, then we’d have to have a million or 2 million or 3 million trials,” he said. “We have thousands of people that are — some murderers and some drug dealers and some of the worst people on Earth.”

“I was elected to get them the hell out of here, and the courts are holding me from doing it,” he added.

“But even given those numbers that you’re talking about, don’t you need to uphold the Constitution of the United States as president?” Welker asked.

“I don’t know,” Trump replied. “I have to respond by saying, again, I have brilliant lawyers that work for me, and they are going to obviously follow what the Supreme Court said.”

Self-Service Replaces Public Service

Our forthcoming book is The Comeback: The 2024 Elections and American Politics. The second Trump administration is off to an ominous start.  Its corruption is unprecedented.

Zachary Basu at Axios:

What's happening: Trump, his sons and their associates have launched a wave of high-dollar projects monetizing their proximity to the most powerful government in the world.

• World Liberty Financial: The Trump-backed crypto venture, where founders include Trump envoy Steve Witkoff and his sons, has raised more than $550 million by selling tokens to buyers around the world. Trump himself serves as the company's "chief crypto advocate," while his administration pursues policies — including a federal crypto reserve — that have boosted the value of assets held by the firm.
• OFFICIAL TRUMP: The president's meme coin surged more than 60% last week after its website advertised an "intimate private dinner" with Trump for the top 220 coin-holders — plus a "special VIP" reception and White House tour for the top 25. The website later scrubbed references to the "White House."
• The Executive Branch: Donald Trump Jr. and his business partners — including Witkoff's sons, Zach and Alex — are launching an exclusive D.C. club with a $500,000 membership fee, pitched as a private hangout for donors and business moguls to rub shoulders with top Trump officials.
• Foreign deals: At least 19 foreign Trump-branded projects will be in development over the next four years, according to ethics watchdog CREW. Just this week, the Trump Organization announced a deal to build a luxury golf resort in Qatar. Trump, whose first foreign visit will be to Saudi Arabia, also hosted a Saudi-backed LIV golf tournament at his Doral club in Florida last month.
• Merchandise: The Trump Organization is selling "Trump 2028" hats, a nod to the president's musings about an unconstitutional third term. Trump hawked Bibles, sneakers, perfume and trading cards during the 2024 campaign, and his political operation continues to rely on MAGA merchandise to raise funds.
• Corporate boards: Dominari Holdings, a small public financial services company with headquarters in New York's Trump Tower, saw its stock price surge more than 1,200% in about six weeks after Trump Jr. and Eric Trump joined its advisory board and took equity stakes worth millions. Trump Jr. also has been named to the board of a digital firearms retailer, called GrabAGun, that's due to go public this summer.

Trump Media Strategy: Influencers > Reporters

Our forthcoming book is The Comeback: The 2024 Elections and American Politics.  Among other things, it discusses Trump's media strategy.

Alex Isenstadt at Axios:

The White House has launched a new Drudge Report-like website devoted to promoting pro-Trump news stories.

Why it matters: The site, called White House Wire, represents the administration's latest effort to circumvent the mainstream media and present itself in a positive light

...

What they're saying: A White House official said the site serves a key strategic purpose: To give pro-Trump influencers a central hub to disseminate Trump-favorable coverage.

• "It's a place for supporters of the president's agenda to get the real news all in one place in a shareable and readable format," the official said.
• "The website will be a one-stop shop for news and is part of the Trump administration's effort to provide transparency and institute policies that put America first," they added.

Justin Baragona at The Independent:

For the second day in a row on Tuesday, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt held a press briefing exclusively for members of what she called the “new media,” claiming she was fulfilling a promise she made at the start of the Trump administration to speak to “all media outlets.”

Of course, as she laid bare at the start of Monday’s presser, these sessions are mostly a way to take softball questions and applause lines from a host of MAGA sycophants who are absolutely ecstatic to be given the opportunity to sit in the White House and play reporter.

“This is our first official influencer briefing,” Leavitt said at the start of Monday’s event. “Millions of Americans are now turning to social media and independent media outlets to consume their news, and we are embracing that change, not ignoring it.”