President Donald Trump revealed at a hearing at the Oval Office in Washington, DC, that the GOP is considering purchasing Spirit Airlines at the cost of taxpayer dollars. In a viral video, Trump stated, “I think we just buy it. We’d be getting it virtually debt-free. They have some good aircraft, good assets — and when the price of oil goes down, we’ll sell it for a profit. I’d love to be able to save those jobs… I like having a lot of airlines so it’s competitive.”
Donald Trump confirmed this after a lawyer explained to a US Bankruptcy Court that the airline was speaking with the government on a financing deal directly from Chapter 11 protection.
In response to this, Trump explained that he had a “smart person” in mind should they purchase the airline and restructure debts while operations continue. Spirit Airlines President and CEO Dave Davis said in a statement. “We are grateful for President Trump’s support and look forward to continuing to work with him and his Administration on a solution that protects thousands of jobs, preserves and enhances competition and helps ensure Americans continue to have access to affordable fares.”
Previous buyout attempts from rivals, including JetBlue and Frontier, have been unsuccessful during Spirit’s bankruptcy.
Reactions to Trump Potentially Buying Out Spirit Airlines Using Taxpayer Dollars
In response to this acquisition, various commenters on X had much to say concerning the payment implications. One person wrote, “Buy it with your own money & leave taxpayers alone for a change. Taxpayers are already paying for your illegal war for Israel & we didn’t sign up to buy spirit airlines.”
Other commenters were more focused on the President’s previous airline acquisitions, with one person writing, “He’s a brilliant airline owner,” paired with an image that reads, “Donald Trump’s airline, Trump Shuttle (1989-1992), was a short-lived, unprofitable luxury venture that defaulted on loans after purchasing the Eastern Air Lines Shuttle for $365 million. Despite adding gold fixtures, it failed due to high debt, high fuel costs, and a lack of aviation experience, eventually being taken over by creditors and sold to USAir.“
Arkansas Republican Senator Tom Cotton also had this to say, “If Spirit’s creditors or other potential investors don’t think they can run it profitably coming out of its second bankruptcy in under two years, I doubt the US Government can either. Not the best use of taxpayer dollars.”
Currently, it is unclear whether a federal acquisition of Spirit Airlines will change any terms and conditions for passengers who already frequent the airline.
