Trump’s Air Force One Escape While Leaving Journalists on ‘Decoy’ Flight Sparks Online Media Fury

(Screengrab via X)

President Donald Trump’s reported secret escape from Air Force One amid fears of an Iranian assassination attempt sparked a furious online backlash Monday, with critics accusing the White House of leaving journalists and staff aboard what was described as a “decoy” aircraft.

The uproar followed a Washington Post report detailing an extraordinary security operation as Trump left Turkey on July 8, a day after the U.S. renewed military strikes on Iran.

Trump initially boarded the familiar presidential Boeing 747 in view of cameras before he and several aides reportedly slipped out another door and into an airport catering truck, which transported them to an Air Force C-32A.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth joined Trump aboard the smaller aircraft for the flight to Britain.

Reporters and some White House staff remained aboard the original plane, reportedly unaware the president wasn’t on board.

The story drew quick and widespread fury online, where liberal pundits seized on the characterization of the original plane as a “decoy” and questioned the decision to keep journalists and staff aboard during what officials considered a credible threat:

Ned Price, a former State Department spokesperson under former President Joe Biden, warned that while a “safeguard” was necessary at times, what was “unique to this White House” was the decision to “lie” to reporters at the time and to the American people in the weeks that followed:

NBC News senior justice reporter Ryan Reilly, meanwhile, joked that the catering-cart maneuver appeared to have been borrowed from Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, referencing speculation surrounding the pop star’s unconventional methods of moving around unnoticed at public events:

MeidasTouch editor-in-chief Ron Filipkowski invoked Biden and Pod Save America co-host Tommy Vietor said the move made Trump look like a “scared little b*tch”:

Meanwhile, MAGA pundits, including podcaster Katie Miller, wife of top Trump aide Stephen Miller, slammed the journalist behind the reporting while others fumed that the story had been leaked in the first place:

Trump had publicly acknowledged the threat after reaching Britain, telling reporters that he was “number one” on Iran’s “list,” but never mentioned the ruse.

Asked why journalists had been ordered to close their window shades before departing Turkey, Trump offered a characteristically dark joke.

“But if I go, you go. Right?” Trump said. “Perhaps someday you want to change professions.”

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