Trump Fan Calls $400m Plane ‘a Bribe’ On Cnn — Then Offers Strange Defense Of $2 Billion Crypto Deal

Prominent Trump supporter Batya Ungar-Sargon called President Donald Trump’s $400 million gift jet “a bribe” but offered a strange defense of a $2 billion crypto deal in which she seemed to agree it was corruption, but at an acceptable “level.”

Trump is currently on a four-day swing through the Persian Gulf region with stops in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, and the United Arab Emirates, which has been dogged by the controversy over his eager acceptance of a $400 million “flying palace” from Qatar to serve as Air Force One.

The trip has also drawn attention to Trump’s family businesses, including the cryptocurrency firm World Liberty Financial. That company’s USD1 currency was selected by state-owned United Arab Emirates firm MGX to pay for a $2 billion investment in Binance earlier this month.

On Wednesday’s edition of CNN NewsNight, anchor Abby Phillip convened a panel that included Ungar-Sargon, Mandela Barnes, Hal Lambert, John Prideaux, and Julie Roginsky.

When the subject of the plane came up, Ungar-Sargon told her fellow panelists, “I think it’s a big deal. I don’t think there’s such a thing as a $400 million gift. It’s a bribe. I don’t think Donald Trump would do anything in exchange for it, but the Qataris certainly think they will get something out of it.”

But she defended the crypto deal, first by trying to equate it with the unproven allegations against ex-President Joe Biden, and then by telling Phillip “politicians have a certain level of corruption across the board. Like, that’s kind of the name of the game”:

PHILLIP: Listen, all I said — all I said with the Biden situation is the Republicans had four years to come up with the proof. They struggled to do that despite money investigations, despite a special counsel. But if you believe that this is a problem, which I think it’s fine to believe that, why can’t you just say that it’s problem for Trump?

UNGAR-SARGON: Oh, because I’m saying that it is something that the American people, including everybody at this table, accepts when it’s happening on their side and then doesn’t accept when it’s happening on the other side.

PHILLIP: Okay, so what about you?

LAMBERT: Going to —

PHILLIP: Does that apply to you?

UNGAR-SARGON: What do you mean?

PHILLIP: I mean, are you one of those Americans who — you’re — you’re mad about it when it happens to the other guy, but not when it happens to you?

UNGAR-SARGON: No. I think that, you know, politicians have a certain level of corruption across the board. Like, that’s kind of the name of the game.

BARNES: So you are mad about what Donald Trump is doing right now?

UNGAR-SARGON: I don’t think that what he’s doing is any worse than anything we all accepted as normal under the Biden administration.

BARNES: But are you — are you mad about it? Sorry. I —

UNGAR-SARGON: I said I’m very mad about the plane.

BARNES: But what about the meme coin?

UNGAR-SARGON: No, I’m not mad about the meme coin.

BARNES: And this is — and this is exactly — and even if you look at the meme coin, this is exactly why Donald Trump is going after ActBlue to use a deflection from his real corruption that’s taken place by letting any sort of foreign investor put money directly into his pocket.

(CROSSTALK)

BARNES: Not even campaign contribution.

Watch above via CNN NewsNight.

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