President Trump stopped to take questions from the media Tuesday night as he made his way back to the White House after a visit to Geneva, Ohio, for the finals of the Patriot Games. Standing in the shadow of Air Force One on the tarmac of Joint Base Andrews, the president was asked to comment on a story the left-wing media was pushing all day about a “decoy” plane used on his July trip to Turkey for a NATO summit.
As RedState reported earlier Tuesday, the president was forced to abandon Air Force One (AF1) as he prepared to depart Turkey on July 8 following a credible assassination threat from Iran. He was secreted off AF1 and put on a smaller plane, unbeknownst to the press pool and some White House staffers who flew on AF1 out of Turkey.
Much of the political media spent Tuesday on the proverbial fainting couch, despairing that the some of their rank were put in danger by traveling with the president. An obvious point to anyone who pays attention. Deranged people like to shoot at Donald Trump; if you want access to him, you accept the risk that goes with that.
In his exchange with the press Tuesday night, the president put the story into perspective with one inconvenient truth: the “decoy plane” was actually safer than the plane he flew out on.
Here’s the exchange, which starts when the president is asked about the “decoy plane” story:
TRUMP: “Well, I go by Secret Service. I go by the military. They said, ‘Sir, we’d like you to do this.’ I said, ‘Whatever you want.’”
REPORTER: “Why was it too dangerous for you to fly on Air Force One, but not too dangerous for the press?”
TRUMP: “Well, I think actually the plane that I flew on was at greater risk. I think it was at greater risk because that would be the plane, I think, that they would be more likely to go for.”
REPORTER: “Were you worried about a shoulder-fired missile?”
TRUMP: “No. I wasn’t worried about anything. I just do what they tell me. They’re very good. Secret Service is very good, and the military is very good.”
And here’s video of him making the comments:
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President Trump just gave his first public explanation for the unusual Air Force One switch during his trip to Turkey last month.
Trump said the decision was made by the Secret Service and the military, and that he simply followed their instructions.
Trump secretly boarded a third, smaller U.S. military aircraft, with an airport catering truck reportedly being used as cover while an older Air Force One remained as a decoy.
The move came as the administration was dealing with what was described as a credible threat from Iran.
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Trump was asked about the decision and made clear that the choice of aircraft wasn’t his.
TRUMP: “That’s up to Secret Service. I just follow what they’d like to do.”
“So I go by Secret Service and the military. They wanted me to go in a different flight, a different plane, equal safety, but they wanted me to do it. So I do it. I do what they say…”
“I think actually the plane that I flew on was at greater risk. I think it was at greater risk because that would be the plane, I think that they would be more likely to go for it.”
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REPORTER: “We’re you worried about a shoulder-fired missile?”
“Uh, I don’t worry about anything to be honest. Whatever it is. You know my attitude? Whatever!”
As we noted in our original story, the “decoys” were aboard the original Air Force One – a heavily modified military aircraft packed with classified security and communications systems designed to keep the president alive and functioning during a crisis. They weren’t exactly sitting ducks in this scenario, although they likely did generate a lot of clicks by pretending they were.
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