Trump lashes out at ABC ‘fake news’ reporter over Qatar jet controversy: ‘You should be embarrassed!’
Donald Trump has once again found himself at the centre of a political storm, this time over a reported $400 million “palace in the sky” being gifted by the Qatari royal family — and his combative exchange with an ABC news reporter has only fuelled the fire.
During a tense white house press conference on monday, the former president lashed out at ABC News correspondent Rachel Scott for repeatedly questioning him on the controversial gift: a luxury Boeing 747-8, allegedly earmarked to serve as the new air force one throughout much of his second term.
Scott pressed Trump on the perception that the aircraft — reportedly due to be transferred to the Trump Presidential library at the conclusion of his presidency — might be seen as a personal gift or, worse, an attempt by Qatar to curry favour with the administration. Trump responded with characteristic aggression, branding Scott “fake news” and saying she “should be embarrassed” for asking the question.
The heated exchange comes amid heightened tensions between Trump and ABC news, whose parent company recently paid him $15 million to settle a defamation lawsuit regarding a George Stephanopoulos interview. ABC was also the first to break the story of Qatar’s proposed gift, raising further questions over whether the offer violates the U.S. Constitution’s emoluments clause, which explicitly prohibits government officials from accepting gifts from foreign states.
Initially attempting to brush off the controversy, Trump told reporters: “I think that was a very nice gesture. I could be a stupid person and say we don’t want a free plane. We give free things out all the time. We’ll take one too. It helps us out.”
Yet as Scott persisted, raising the possibility that the luxury jet might be seen as a bribe, Trump lost his composure. “You are ABC fake news, right?!” he snapped. “Let me tell you, you should be embarrassed asking that question. They are giving us a free jet. I could say no, don’t give us, I want to pay you a billion or $400 million or whatever it is. Or I can say thank you very much.”
Trump then digressed into an unusual golfing analogy, referencing the late golfing legend Sam Snead. “When they give you a putt, you walk to the next hole and say thank you very much. A lot of people are stupid and say no, I insist on putting, and they miss it and their partner gets angry at them. Remember that.”
Scott, however, was undeterred and pressed again, asking whether the president had accepted a gift worth hundreds of millions of dollars without any expectation of something in return. Trump angrily retorted: “It’s not a gift to me, but a gift to the Department of Defense. You should know better. You have been embarrassed enough. ABC is a disaster.”
More Read
The Trump administration, anticipating criticism, has claimed the gift is legally permissible, with the Justice Department and the president’s top White House lawyer asserting that the arrangement is acceptable provided the aircraft is officially transferred to the Trump Presidential Library at the end of his term. Nonetheless, critics point out that Attorney General Pam Bondi — now defending the deal — previously worked as a registered foreign lobbyist for Qatar, earning $115,000 a month.
The controversy has also drawn criticism from right-leaning quarters. The Free Press, a centrist, anti-woke publication, chastised Trump for accepting the opulent jet, noting that many in the GOP and conservative media had spent years attacking the Biden family over similar allegations.
“The Hunter Biden affair really was a scandal. But these days, it seems like small potatoes,” the editors wrote. “The Qatari plane is not an exception but the rule for the second Trump administration so far. Both foreign friends and foes are now treating this as a pay-to-play presidency.”
Attempting to calm the storm, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt told Fox & Friends: “Absolutely not, because they know President Trump and they know he only works with the interests of the American public in mind.”
