The US will allow Qatari pilots to train in Idaho –– MAGA influencers aren’t happy
Qatar will finance a training facility at an Idaho Air Force base, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Friday. However, the announcement has been condemned by some in President Donald Trump’s orbit, including far-right activist and self-described “proud Islamaphobe,” Laura Loomer.
Qatari air force to train at Idaho base
On Friday, Hegseth announced that Qatar will fund a facility at the Mountain Home Air Force Base in southwestern Idaho. There, the Qatari Emiri Air Force will train fighter pilots and house roughly a dozen F-15 fighter jets, which it is purchasing from the U.S.
In making the announcement alongside Qatar’s Minister of Defense Saoud bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, Hegseth cited Qatar’s role in getting a tentative Gaza ceasefire deal across the finish line, adding that the location in Idaho’s Elmore County will “enhance our combined training, increase lethality [and] interoperability.”
According to The Hill, the base currently hosts F-15SG fighter jets that belong to Singapore.
Reuters also reported that the facility, which will be built by U.S.-based contractors overseen by the U.S. military, has been discussed “for years.” Qatar, in turn, will fund the construction and purchase the jets from America. A U.S. official told Reuters that the new Qatari base features hangars and an operations area for training.
MAGA influencers, pundits respond
The idea did not sit well with Loomer, who called the announcement “deeply disturbing” in a post to X, and said that the Pentagon’s decision to host a majority-Muslim country’s military on U.S. soil could keep her from the ballot box during the 2026 midterms.
“Never thought I’d see Republicans give terror financing Muslims from Qatar a MILITARY BASE on US soil so they can murder Americans,” Loomer posted to X Friday night, accompanied by a 2017 video of Trump saying that Qatar has a history of funding terrorism. “I don’t think I’ll be voting in 2026,” Loomer added. “I cannot in good conscience make any excuses for the harboring of jihadis. This is where I draw the line.”
Loomer concluded her X thread by calling out Republican lawmakers, describing them as “weak and pathetic.”
“I go to sleep tonight knowing I will Sleep without guilt while the entire GOP is too afraid to call out the Qatar insanity,” Loomer wrote. “It must suck being so weak and pathetic as a US Congressman that you can’t bring yourself to call out the uncouth nature of rubbing elbows with jihadists in suits.”
Steve Bannon, a chief strategist during Trump’s first term in the Oval Office, similarly told Newsweek that “There should never be a military base of a foreign power on the sacred soil of America.”
Hegseth issues clarifying statement
Following the backlash from conservative pundits and influencers, Hegseth attempted to tamp down the rhetoric.
“The U.S. military has a long-standing partnership w/ Qatar, including today’s announced cooperation w/ F-15QA aircraft,” Hegseth posted to X. “However, to be clear, Qatar will not have their own base in the United States — nor anything like a base. We control the existing base, like we do with all partners.”
A spokesperson for the Qatari Embassy also clarified that the base will only serve as a training ground, not a Qatari air base. “Qatar has made an initial 10-year commitment to construct and maintain a dedicated facility within an existing U.S. air base, intended for advanced training and to enhance interoperability,” the spokesperson said.
As Reuters notes, Qatar and the U.S. have a security partnership in the Middle East. The country, which borders Saudi Arabia and sits across the Persian Gulf from Iran, also hosts the largest U.S. military base in the region.
Trump strengthens ties with Qatar
The Trump administration has been strengthening its ties with Qatar in recent months. Back in July, the U.S. Department of Defense officially accepted a Boeing 747-8 from the Qatari government as an “unconditional donation,” valued at around $400 million. The aircraft, once used by Qatar’s royal family, will be retrofitted for use as Air Force One.
More recently, Trump personally thanked Qatar for helping to broker the tentative ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, aimed at bringing the two-year war in Gaza to an end.
“This is a GREAT Day for the Arab and Muslim World, Israel, all surrounding Nations, and the United States of America, and we thank the mediators from Qatar, Egypt, and Turkey, who worked with us to make this Historic and Unprecedented Event happen,” Trump posted to Truth Social on Wednesday.
Loomer is a close Trump confidant and has used her platform in the past to influence policy decisions. In August, she criticized a program that resettled Palestinian refugees in the U.S. Less than 24 hours later, the State Department halted that program, as two lawmakers crediting Loomer with the policy shift.
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Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
