The controversy over the plane is happening as President Trump visits Saudi Arabia on Tuesday, and then is due to fly to Qatar for a state visit on Wednesday.
US Senator Schumer said he wants answers to whether the Qatari government will pay for modifications of the aircraft needed to protect the president, secure communications, and provide special configurations for what is in practice an airborne Oval Office workspace.
If the US government had to bear those costs, Schumer said, “why are American taxpayers being asked to spend hundreds of millions of dollars or more on a plane that will only be used for a year or two?”
The Defense Department is already in the process of procuring a replacement for the current, ageing Air Force One, with delivery by Boeing expected within a couple of years.
A White House spokesperson on Monday said details of the gift were still being arranged.
Outside ethics experts have listed a range of Trump activities that could point to the president using his office to enrich himself or his family. Schumer specifically mentioned a $TRUMP meme coin, plans for a new Trump hotel in Dubai and a new golf course in Qatar.
Currently, three Trump Justice Department nominees are before the Senate: an assistant attorney general for Maryland and two in Virginia.
