Deb Fischer objected to unanimous consent for Schumer’s Presidential Airlift Security Act, arguing it could also disrupt the Survivable Airborne Operations Center program tied to presidential continuity during nuclear conflict.
Republican Sen. Deb Fischer (Neb.) blocked Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer’s effort to pass legislation that would prohibit the Pentagon from spending taxpayer money to retrofit a Boeing 747 gifted to President Trump from Qatar for use as Air Force One. Schumer argued the aircraft, which he said was a $400 million gift, would require hundreds of millions of dollars in security upgrades and cited that cost as further evidence that accepting it was a mistake. Fischer said the proposal had already been considered and voted down by the Senate earlier this year and warned it would also apply to the Survivable Airborne Operations Center program, an airborne command post designed to preserve presidential command capabilities during a nuclear conflict. The dispute comes after Trump returned from a trip to Turkey earlier this month aboard the old Air Force One, amid concerns that the Qatari jet lacks the defensive systems needed to protect the president. The New York Times reported the aircraft does not have defensive countermeasures to evade missiles and other threats, while Trump said on Sunday the donated plane would be “maxed out,” indicating it could be fitted with additional security equipment.