Trump Administration Spending

Axios reports that Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem has used money from the Trump-era One Big Beautiful Bill—funds Congress intended for border security, Coast Guard aircraft and the Operation Homecoming 'self‑deportation' program—to buy or lease a fleet of three luxury aircraft worth nearly $300 million, including two Gulfstream G700s and a Boeing 737 outfitted with a bar and bedroom. Internal administration sources say the Gulfstreams, costing about $200 million total, were initially paid for out of Coast Guard maritime border, C‑130 and fleet‑upgrade accounts, with DHS later planning to backfill those accounts using 'border support' money in the bill. The third plane, a 737 configured for just 18 passengers that DHS publicly touts as a deportation and Cabinet‑transport workhorse, is currently being leased out of Operation Homecoming funds, despite that program having helped only about 12,500 of 25,000 people who signed up for 'self‑deportation' as of last October. Senior officials—including OMB Director Russ Vought—have privately complained to the White House that the purchases are an 'abuse' and 'the world’s worst deal to buy an aircraft,' though DHS defends the moves as cheaper than long‑term chartering and says commanders need secure communications and reliable transport. The story adds fuel to growing social‑media criticism that Trump’s much‑touted deportation war chest is being tapped for VIP‑style air travel instead of on‑the‑ground enforcement and raises fresh oversight questions for Congress about how loosely the border provisions in One Big Beautiful Bill were written.