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If true, this is really embarrassing. Have security standards really fallen that far, that we can't protect the US president in a more dignified way? That this

If true, this is really embarrassing. Have security standards really fallen that far, that we can't protect the US president in a more dignified way? That this story is even out there at all is an embarrassing low point for US competence and security. Amidst a ton of other incompetence and general displays of weakness from the US.

SoftTalker 2mo ago
TFA says Clinton did something similar. I'm sure it happens more than we're told. The Secret Service is paid to be paranoid. Decoy flights and vehicles are out of the standard playbook.
- epistasis 2mo ago
  The embarrassing thing isn't using an unmarked flight like Clinton did. That's totally normal, and not something I'd find unusual in the least. It's that shuttling around in a catering cart... Why would anybody ever admit it, even if true? Just baffling bad idea to leak that part of a detail.
  - deleted 2mo ago
    [deleted]
  - SoftTalker 2mo ago
    Hiding in a catering cart is certainly unusual, I'll give you that. I'm having trouble deciding whether it's ridiculous or quite clever. And then reappearing on the original aircraft at the destination. I wonder if they got consulting from Penn and Teller.
- MiroslavPokorny 2mo ago
  Someone has been watching too many movies. Airports are an easy target especially with all that jet fuel around the place. If they dont get you on the ground they only have to wait a few moments and they can easy get the plane as it taxis or takes off. The new technology wars should make it obvious that there is a considerable inbalance between missiles or other projectiles and systems to counter them.
fiatpandas 2mo ago
The Secret Service has a lot more to be embarrassed about in its recent history than this decoy maneuver, which seems to have been executed fairly well. And I really doubt it was a “cart” - it was probably the room sized catering containers that trucks lift up to the side of the plane.
- fakedang 2mo ago
  It was, and the picture even demonstrates the size of these carts. The article even mentions as follows: "The president reportedly boarded the old Air Force One jumbo jet in view of television cameras, and then was secretly shuttled minutes later to a smaller plane via an airport catering truck typically used to load meals and other supplies preflight, a US official told the Post."
deleted 2mo ago
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D13Fd 2mo ago
Is it, though? It was highly effective with basically zero downsides, and well executed. I’m honestly not sure what the problem is.
- epistasis 2mo ago
  Zero downsides except looking weak and like a doofus. The US is already looking super weak having given up the Strait to Iran for zero gain, and now begging them to just open the Strait up and publicly signaling that the nuclear demands could be dropped. Crawling around in catering trucks or carts to avoid Iran's threats is at best demeaning to the entire nation. As for "highly effective" well..... Would have been far more effective if there weren't such loose lips that embarrassed the office. Seriously, lock that shit down. This is probably a case of a presidency so weak that it doesn't even realize when its signaling weakness, and thought it was "cool" or something to do this, which is why they leaked it. Meanwhile our allies feel sad for us and our enemies laugh at us.
  - deleted 2mo ago
    [deleted]
  - leereeves 2mo ago
    > Crawling around in catering trucks or carts to avoid Iran's threats is at best demeaning to the entire nation. The article actually says "secretly shuttled minutes later to a smaller plane via an airport catering truck". The picture shows the size of the truck. No crawling was involved; The Guardian just crafted the headline to make Trump look "weak and like a doofus" and you bought into it.
    - karmakurtisaani 2mo ago
      It doesn't matter what the reality is, but what it can be made to look like. The fact that Trump needs some stupid maneuvers is already a terrible look, after that it becomes a joke.
      - 2mo ago
RickJWagner 2mo ago
You’re joking, right? This was a preemptive security move, and the president is still alive. Crazy people have tried to kill Trump multiple times already. Every minute of every day must be guarded, especially as the president travels. The Secret Service is rising to the biggest challenge it’s ever had, and thus far it is succeeding.
- epistasis 2mo ago
  Making "preemptive security move" to protect against supposed Iranian infiltration is what makes us look weak, when the extent of it is walking into a catering cart and moving to a different plane. "The biggest challenge its ever had" are you serious? Crazy people tried to kill every president, remember Reagan? The only thing with "crazy people trying to kill the president" that's different is that people are pretending it's new rather than the norm for presidents. But this is a state actor, not some "crazy person." That the US is letting it leak that this is in response to Iran, looks very weak, and it shines a light on the president being really weak with Iran on everything.
  - RickJWagner 2mo ago
    I remember a gunman that shot Reagan, yes. One gunman. Trump has had the kid that shot up the rally ( and yielded the iconic photo ), the golf course gunman, the guy that shot up the annual press dinner and now the Iranians. Do you remember it being as bad for other presidents? Provide reasons why, by my count Trump seems to draw the assassins out.
    - epistasis 2mo ago
      "Golf course gunman" was not an attack, but boy did they try to make a standard arrest like it was one. Trump is a uniquely violent president, and polarizing president, that intentionally inflames as much violence as possible in the US, assuming it will benefit him. But that also means highlighting as much as possible any sort of thing that would not even leave a mark on people's memories. For example do you remember any of these stories? * Utah man suspected of threatening Biden shot and killed as FBI served warrant - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/utah-man-suspected-of-threatening-biden-shot-and-killed-as-fbi-served-warrant https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/utah-man-suspected-of-... * 2023: man crashes rented U-haul into White House fence in attempt to install "Nazi" government https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c87ddew5z8eo https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c87ddew5z8eo Then going further back there incidents like bullets hitting the White House while Obama was in office. Political violence is definitely increasing as polarization is increasing, and attempts to decrease polarization have failed miserably, so I expect more political violence levels in future years. But at least we are nowhere near the violence of the 1960s!

SoftTalker 2mo ago

TFA says Clinton did something similar. I'm sure it happens more than we're told. The Secret Service is paid to be paranoid. Decoy flights and vehicles are out of the standard playbook.

epistasis 2mo ago
The embarrassing thing isn't using an unmarked flight like Clinton did. That's totally normal, and not something I'd find unusual in the least. It's that shuttling around in a catering cart... Why would anybody ever admit it, even if true? Just baffling bad idea to leak that part of a detail.
- deleted 2mo ago
  [deleted]
- SoftTalker 2mo ago
  Hiding in a catering cart is certainly unusual, I'll give you that. I'm having trouble deciding whether it's ridiculous or quite clever. And then reappearing on the original aircraft at the destination. I wonder if they got consulting from Penn and Teller.
MiroslavPokorny 2mo ago
Someone has been watching too many movies. Airports are an easy target especially with all that jet fuel around the place. If they dont get you on the ground they only have to wait a few moments and they can easy get the plane as it taxis or takes off. The new technology wars should make it obvious that there is a considerable inbalance between missiles or other projectiles and systems to counter them.

fiatpandas 2mo ago

The Secret Service has a lot more to be embarrassed about in its recent history than this decoy maneuver, which seems to have been executed fairly well. And I really doubt it was a “cart” - it was probably the room sized catering containers that trucks lift up to the side of the plane.

fakedang 2mo ago
It was, and the picture even demonstrates the size of these carts. The article even mentions as follows: "The president reportedly boarded the old Air Force One jumbo jet in view of television cameras, and then was secretly shuttled minutes later to a smaller plane via an airport catering truck typically used to load meals and other supplies preflight, a US official told the Post."

deleted 2mo ago

[deleted]

D13Fd 2mo ago

Is it, though? It was highly effective with basically zero downsides, and well executed. I’m honestly not sure what the problem is.

epistasis 2mo ago
Zero downsides except looking weak and like a doofus. The US is already looking super weak having given up the Strait to Iran for zero gain, and now begging them to just open the Strait up and publicly signaling that the nuclear demands could be dropped. Crawling around in catering trucks or carts to avoid Iran's threats is at best demeaning to the entire nation. As for "highly effective" well..... Would have been far more effective if there weren't such loose lips that embarrassed the office. Seriously, lock that shit down. This is probably a case of a presidency so weak that it doesn't even realize when its signaling weakness, and thought it was "cool" or something to do this, which is why they leaked it. Meanwhile our allies feel sad for us and our enemies laugh at us.
- deleted 2mo ago
  [deleted]
- leereeves 2mo ago
  > Crawling around in catering trucks or carts to avoid Iran's threats is at best demeaning to the entire nation. The article actually says "secretly shuttled minutes later to a smaller plane via an airport catering truck". The picture shows the size of the truck. No crawling was involved; The Guardian just crafted the headline to make Trump look "weak and like a doofus" and you bought into it.
  - karmakurtisaani 2mo ago
    It doesn't matter what the reality is, but what it can be made to look like. The fact that Trump needs some stupid maneuvers is already a terrible look, after that it becomes a joke.
    - 2mo ago

RickJWagner 2mo ago

You’re joking, right? This was a preemptive security move, and the president is still alive. Crazy people have tried to kill Trump multiple times already. Every minute of every day must be guarded, especially as the president travels. The Secret Service is rising to the biggest challenge it’s ever had, and thus far it is succeeding.

epistasis 2mo ago
Making "preemptive security move" to protect against supposed Iranian infiltration is what makes us look weak, when the extent of it is walking into a catering cart and moving to a different plane. "The biggest challenge its ever had" are you serious? Crazy people tried to kill every president, remember Reagan? The only thing with "crazy people trying to kill the president" that's different is that people are pretending it's new rather than the norm for presidents. But this is a state actor, not some "crazy person." That the US is letting it leak that this is in response to Iran, looks very weak, and it shines a light on the president being really weak with Iran on everything.
- RickJWagner 2mo ago
  I remember a gunman that shot Reagan, yes. One gunman. Trump has had the kid that shot up the rally ( and yielded the iconic photo ), the golf course gunman, the guy that shot up the annual press dinner and now the Iranians. Do you remember it being as bad for other presidents? Provide reasons why, by my count Trump seems to draw the assassins out.
  - epistasis 2mo ago
    "Golf course gunman" was not an attack, but boy did they try to make a standard arrest like it was one. Trump is a uniquely violent president, and polarizing president, that intentionally inflames as much violence as possible in the US, assuming it will benefit him. But that also means highlighting as much as possible any sort of thing that would not even leave a mark on people's memories. For example do you remember any of these stories? * Utah man suspected of threatening Biden shot and killed as FBI served warrant - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/utah-man-suspected-of-threatening-biden-shot-and-killed-as-fbi-served-warrant https://www.pbs.org/newshour/politics/utah-man-suspected-of-... * 2023: man crashes rented U-haul into White House fence in attempt to install "Nazi" government https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c87ddew5z8eo https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c87ddew5z8eo Then going further back there incidents like bullets hitting the White House while Obama was in office. Political violence is definitely increasing as polarization is increasing, and attempts to decrease polarization have failed miserably, so I expect more political violence levels in future years. But at least we are nowhere near the violence of the 1960s!