In what might be the most elaborate game of musical chairs ever played by a US president, Donald Trump reportedly ditched his own cabinet members on a decoy Air Force One last month, slipping away via a catering truck to board a different plane due to unspecified security concerns involving Iran. CBS News reports that Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent remained on the original aircraft, blissfully unaware (or at least professionally stoic) that they were flying in a giant, shiny distraction.

The ruse unfolded on 8 July in Ankara, Turkey, after a NATO summit. Trump boarded Air Force One with Rubio, Bessent, and the press corps, only to sneak off via a catering truck to a military plane. The original plane kept the call signal 'Air Force One' - a label that technically applies to any aircraft the president is on, but in this case, the president was conspicuously not on it. Thus, the decoy was born.

Why the switcheroo? Trump told reporters on Monday night that the decision was made by the US military and the Secret Service, who 'wanted me to go in a different flight.' He declined to specify the nature of the threat, offering only the vague reassurance that 'any consequential president has a lot of threats.' Because nothing says 'consequential' like hiding in a catering truck.

Rubio and Bessent, along with White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller and communications director Steven Cheung, stayed on the decoy plane to maintain the line of succession - in case something happened to Trump, the VP, the Speaker, and the Senate Pro Tempore, Rubio would take over, followed by Bessent. So basically, the decoy wasn't just a distraction; it was a floating government-in-waiting.

The second aircraft carried Trump and Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth, among others. The White House has been contacted for comment, but as of press time, they're probably still trying to figure out how to spin this one.

This wasn't a novel move - the Secret Service calls these 'shell games,' and they're common enough. Identical limousines swap in motorcades, helicopters do the same, and in March 2000, Bill Clinton flew to Islamabad on an unmarked jet while a decoy with Air Force One livery took the scenic route. But the press was briefed then, and they kept it quiet. This time, reporters say they had no idea they were on the decoy, which is either a testament to the secrecy or a concerning oversight, depending on your perspective.

The White House Correspondent's Association has yet to comment, perhaps still recovering from the shock of being unwitting decoys. As for the occupants of the decoy plane, their level of danger remains unclear, but at least they had the comfort of knowing they were vital to the line of succession - even if they were also, technically, bait.