President Donald Trump has hidden the real price of the plane “ICE Barbie” Kristi Noem leased during her time as homeland security secretary, according to the Daily Beast’s PunchUp Substack.
The White House decided to keep the luxury jet and make it available for select Cabinet members and for VIP use by first lady Melania Trump after Noem was ousted last month.
The DHS has claimed that the plane, a Boeing 737 Max 8, was purchased for $70 million. In reality, its full cost comes in nearly $40 million above that figure.
The full price tag of the aircraft lands at $108 million, two senior administration officials told PunchUp in the first major scoop for the newly launched Substack, which promises to bring the energy of old-fashioned muckraking to the world of Trump.
One of the officials took aim at the DHS figure, which appears to be about 54 percent lower than the plane’s true cost, telling PunchUp, “Not sure who is providing that information but it is inaccurate.”
And even though the White House “decided to buy” the plane, it’s sticking the DHS with the tab, the officials said.
“The White House is essentially telling ICE: you didn’t have any say, but f--- you, pony up the cash and hand over the keys,” one official said, speaking to PunchUp on the condition of anonymity.
The Daily Beast has reached out to the White House and the DHS for comment.
Originally justified by Noem as a tool for “high-profile deportations,” the Boeing 737 comes outfitted like a flying penthouse—complete with a queen-sized bed, showers, a kitchen, flat-screen TVs, and even a bar.
The jet was used to whisk Noem and her alleged lover Corey Lewandowski around the country. The luxury vehicle became a flashpoint at last month’s congressional hearing that ultimately led to her downfall.
Noem, who spent $220 million on a DHS ad showing her on horseback at Mount Rushmore, claimed at the Senate oversight hearing that the plane’s purchase would “save the taxpayers hundreds of millions of dollars.”
It’s unclear how the luxury plane, now set aside for White House officials and Melania—not deportations—is supposed to save taxpayers a dime.
The plane is the latest addition to the fleet that the White House already oversees.
Among them is Air Force One, the presidential jet which has a full office and bedroom, kitchens, and other high-tech components.
But Trump also has another plane—a luxury $400 million Boeing 747-8 jumbo jet that was gifted to him by the Qatari royal family and is set to be delivered to Trump by this summer.
