Ted Cruz Is 'Not Particularly Keen' on Donald Trump's Qatari Air Force One

Senator Ted Cruz said he is still "not particularly keen" on President Donald Trump's use of a Boeing 747 donated by Qatar as Air Force One. In the same breath, after his first flight aboard it, the Texas Republican called it "a ridiculously nice plane."

The remark came on Friday's episode of his podcast, Verdict with Ted Cruz, as he described traveling with Trump on Wednesday from the White House to a San Antonio rally for Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, the GOP Senate nominee. It was a reservation, not a break. Cruz did not call for any action, and he spent most of the segment praising the jet.

"I've said before, I'm not particularly keen on the fact that we got Air Force One from the Qataris. That being said, it is a ridiculously nice plane." — Senator Ted Cruz

Ted Cruz Describes His First Flight on the Qatari Air Force One

"This is the first time that I've flown on the new Air Force One that the President got from the Qataris," Cruz told co-host Ben Ferguson.

Cruz then talked up the interior. He said Trump gave him a tour and that the plane "looks like a super high-end yacht inside, like it's just gorgeous woodwork and leather." Of the old Air Force One, which he called "amazing," he said, "This new one is orders of magnitude nicer." Cruz also said it was "a plane that cost billions of dollars to build." (The donated 747-8 has been valued at $400 million, CBS News reported.)

Earlier that day Cruz took his first ride on Marine One, which flew from the South Lawn to Air Force One. He admitted to Ferguson, who had flown on it during the George W.

What Cruz and Other Republicans Said in 2025

Cruz's "I've said before" goes back to May 2025, when Trump confirmed that Qatar's royal family would give the 747-8 for presidential use. Appearing on CNBC's Squawk Box on May 13, 2025, Cruz raised espionage and surveillance concerns about the plane.

Some other Republicans raised concerns too. Maine Senator Susan Collins warned of espionage and ethical issues with the gift. Former Vice President Mike Pence called it a bad idea that Trump should turn down.

Democrats went further. Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer vowed to hold up Justice Department nominees over the jet, citing the emoluments clause. The emoluments clause is the constitutional provision that bars federal officeholders from accepting gifts from foreign states without the consent of Congress.

The objections did not stop the deal. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth formally accepted the plane on May 21, 2025. The Freedom of the Press Foundation sued the Justice Department on July 28, 2025, to obtain a legal memo from Attorney General Pam Bondi's office on the jet, which had not been released when the suit was filed.

The Qatari Jet: From Offer to Cruz's Flight

• May 2025: Trump confirms the Qatari offer. Cruz, Collins and Pence voice concerns.
• May 21, 2025: Hegseth accepts the 747-8 on behalf of the Defense Department.
• June 2025: Air Force Secretary Troy Meink tells Congress the retrofit is "probably less than $400 million."
• July 2025: Congressional investigators believe a $934 million transfer out of the Sentinel nuclear missile program, slipped into a Pentagon document as an unnamed classified project, "almost certainly includes" the renovation, The Boston Globe reported.
• July 1, 2026: Trump takes the first flight on the jet, to North Dakota.
• Wednesday: Cruz flies on it to San Antonio.

The jet is expected to stay in service until a new Boeing fleet arrives in 2028.

How Americans Viewed the Qatar Jet Gift

The public was skeptical from the start. A YouGov poll conducted May 12, 2025 of 3,612 U.S. adults found that 47 percent called it unacceptable for the administration to accept the jet, 30 percent called it acceptable and 23 percent were unsure.

What Happens Next in Texas

Cruz spent the rest of the segment on the rally. He said the Senate race between Paxton and Democrat James Talarico is "basically tied" and faulted Talarico for staying off the campaign trail. PolitiKool's polling average shows Talarico ahead 46.9 percent to 43.5 percent. Some Republicans have openly worried about Paxton, including Fox News host Brian Kilmeade, who said the nominee "got lazy."

For Cruz, the Qatari jet now sits on the list of things he dislikes in principle and enjoys in practice. Whether any Republican presses the issue further before the plane is retired in 2028 is another matter.