Democratic leader wants to suspend Trump's judicial appointments after Qatari plane donation

 Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer on Tuesday denounced Qatar's gift of a presidential jet to the United States, calling it "pure corruption," and announcing that he would block the confirmation of all of President Donald Trump's Justice Department nominees.

"This is not just pure corruption, it's also a serious threat to national security," the New York senator said in a speech shared by his office and scheduled to be delivered in the Senate on Tuesday.

The US president on Monday strongly defended his decision to accept a Boeing 747 jet donated by the Qatari royal family to the United States, valued by experts at around $400 million. The Republican president said it would be "foolish" to refuse such a gift, which he plans to use as his new presidential plane.

Senate Democratic members spoke on Monday of a "clear conflict of interest," especially since the US Constitution prohibits those holding public office from accepting gifts "from a king, prince, or foreign state."

"In light of this deeply disturbing news about Qatar's potential financing of Air Force One, and reports that the Attorney General personally approved this clearly immoral deal, I am announcing a suspension of the confirmation of all Justice Department appointees until we receive further answers," Schumer said in his speech.

In the United States, the Constitution requires Senate confirmation of Cabinet members and other senior officials.

Although Democrats are in the minority in this chamber, they have regulatory tools that could significantly slow down the process.

Following the announcement of this Qatari gift, Chuck Schumer called for the formation of a specialized unit within the Justice Department "to do its job and uncover all activities of Qatari foreign agents within the United States that could benefit President Trump or his Trump Organization," the holding company owned by the Republican billionaire.

The Democratic leader also called for full disclosure of the details of the agreement with Qatar, particularly whether Doha would be responsible for installing security equipment on the plane.

Democratic Senator Chris Murphy promised on Monday to block any future arms sales to "a country that makes direct personal deals with Trump."