Trump Evacuated From Turkey
A reported Iran threat prompted Secret Service to quietly fly Trump out of Turkey.
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Analysis & opinion
The reporting
President Donald Trump confirmed that Secret Service and military officials directed him to secretly leave Air Force One in Turkey last month after a possible Iranian threat involving a shoulder-fired missile. The plan moved Trump by catering truck from the plane he had publicly boarded to a smaller C-32A military jet, while the legacy Air Force One flew as a decoy with the press corps and senior officials aboard. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent remained on the decoy plane; aides traveling with Trump included Natalie Harp and Dan Scavino.
Analysis & opinion
Cowardly stuntLeans Left
Trump’s secret plane swap was a cowardly and ridiculous stunt that deserved criticism rather than defensive spin. It turned a security episode into a farce by making others bear the risk while Trump avoided it.
Decoy betrayalLeans Left
Trump protected himself from a possible Iranian assassination threat by leaving aides, officials, and journalists exposed on Air Force One as a decoy. The secrecy and selective protection of favored people made the plane switch a betrayal of those left behind, not just a routine security maneuver.
Media misplaced outrageLeans Right
The media cared too much about being excluded from the secret plane-switch decision and not enough about the danger to Trump. Their objections were unjustified because the priority was protecting the president from a potential assassination threat.
Legitimate securityLeans Right
Moving Trump to another aircraft was a prudent Secret Service security decision in response to a possible threat. Complaints about the press being uninformed or inconvenienced were overblown and self-important.
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