‘That is not America first’: MAGA icons erupt after Trump’s decision leaves them wondering whose side he’s really on

Trump confirmed the reports on his social media platform, Truth Social, calling it a “great gesture” that would save American taxpayers a significant expense. “So the fact that the Defense Department is getting a GIFT, FREE OF CHARGE, of a 747 aircraft to replace the 40-year-old Air Force One, temporarily, in a very public and transparent transaction, so bothers the Crooked Democrats that they insist we pay, TOP DOLLAR, for the plane. Anybody can do that!” Trump wrote. He further defended the decision in remarks to reporters, stating, “I think it’s a great gesture from Qatar. I appreciate it very much. I would never be one to turn down that kind of an offer.”

However, the backlash didn’t come from Democrats this time. Instead, it was Trump’s own MAGA loyalists who erupted, accusing the former president of compromising his values and cozying up to a foreign nation they view as adversarial to U.S. interests. Ben Shapiro, a conservative pundit and vocal er of Trump’s policies, blasted the decision as incompatible with the “America First” agenda. “Taking sacks of goodies from people who Hamas, the Muslim Brotherhood, Al Jazeera, all the rest—that is not America First,” Shapiro said on his podcast. “If you want President Trump to succeed, this kind of skeezy stuff needs to stop.”

Laura Loomer, a far-right activist and conspiracy theorist who has long championed Trump, expressed her disappointment in a series of social media posts. “We cannot accept a $400 million ‘gift’ from jihadists in suits,” she wrote, referring to Qatar’s alleged ties to extremist groups. Loomer called the situation “concerning” and warned that it could become a “stain” on Trump’s legacy. 

Fox News host Mark Levin ed the chorus of disapproval, echoing Loomer’s concerns and questioning the optics of accepting such a gift from Qatar. Levin and others in MAGA circles have pointed to Qatar’s history of ing groups like Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood as evidence that the country is not a reliable ally. “This is really going to complicate foreign policy,” Loomer told Politico. “And I say that as someone who would take a bullet for Trump. I’m so disappointed.”

Missouri Senator Josh Hawley, another staunch Trump ally, argued that Air Force One should be an American-made aircraft, in keeping with Trump’s own “Buy American” policies. “It would be better if Air Force One were a big, beautiful jet made in the United States of America,” Hawley said.