U.S. President Donald Trump has never had great admiration for the press, but recent events have shown just how little respect he has for them and his own people.
Reports have emerged that Trump he slipped away from Air Force One while leaving last month’s NATO summit in Turkey because the Secret Service thought it a prudent safety precaution after receiving a credible threat.
In an almost comedic act of deception, he boarded Air Force One and then slipped out another door to stow away in an airport catering vehicle and then sneak onto and take off on board a second plane.
Air Force One was then sent into the sky acting as a decoy, with White House officials, support staff and members of the media covering the trip left completely in the dark.
Let that sink in. The leader of the self-proclaimed most powerful nation on the planet snuck away from an official event hidden in a cart while he boldly left other people to face a threat levelled against him.
Now, to be fair, there are many moving parts when you are heading to another hemisphere and Iran has been crafting assassination plots for some time, but this is still unacceptable.
Switching planes is fine. Extra security precautions are the norm, and last minutes adjustments are to be expected, but to risk the lives of others to protect your own without even telling them is disgusting.
The war in Iran has produced many challenges for Trump, Republicans and the American people, but this incident still stands out as a new low for what some would call the Obfuscator-in-Chief and others would simply call “coward”.
I’m Paul Martin and that’s what I see looking Beyond the Headlines.
