What To Know
- Former CIA Director Leon Panetta doubted Donald Trump’s stated reason for switching planes after the NATO Summit.
- Panetta argued that security concerns were likely the real reason for Trump’s decision.
- Trump chose to fly home on the original Air Force One rather than the plane gifted to him by the Qatar government.
Former CIA Director Leon Panetta isn’t buying what Donald Trump is selling when it comes to his reasons for switching planes for his flight home from the NATO Summit in Turkey on Wednesday (July 8).
Panetta, who served as head of the CIA under President Barack Obama, appeared on MS NOW’s The Moment with Katy Tur on Wednesday, where he touched on the plane switch. This came after a New York Times reporter asked Trump why he wasn’t flying home on the $400 million jet the Qatari government had gifted him.
“It’s flying to Europe to one of the big bases, two or three of the big bases where we can show it to the people,” Trump said of the plane, which was meant to be the new Air Force One. “And we’ll be going home by normal methods. But we have it going to Europe to a couple of bases, actually one in particular. But it’s going to go to a couple of bases so the soldiers can see it because it’s truly magnificent.”
Panetta believed this was just a “cover story” and that the real reason Trump chose to travel on the original Air Force One rather than the new plane was due to security concerns.
“I’ve always been concerned about security issues with this kind of plane that’s built by another country, regardless of the fact we may have good relations with that country,” Panetta said, per Mediaite. “The fact is that from a security point of view, you have got to be concerned that there are going to be efforts to try to gather intelligence.”
Panetta said he’s sure the whole plane was “reviewed,” but he’d still be “very concerned about making sure that the president’s security is protected.” The only way to ensure that is “by having that plane made in the United States and carrying the equipment that is provided by the United States.”
“I don’t think there’s any question that there are security concerns here,” he continued. What they are, we don’t know, but I’m sure that’s involved.”
Tur asked Panetta whether he’d ever heard of a situation in which the president switched planes. “I know usually there are two Air Force Ones… when the president travels, there’s always a backup,” she said. “Usually, if there is a problem, it’s a maintenance issue, right? Could it just be a maintenance issue?”
“Well, it’s a brand new plane. If there’s a maintenance issue with a brand new plane, that raises even more concerns. I don’t think this is about maintenance,” Panetta answered.
He added, “This is a cover story of some kind to try to deploy one plane to Britain and have the president return to the old plane that was Air Force One there. There’s more going on. I think the war in Iran may have something to do with it. He is in Turkey. It’s right next to Iran.”
“There does have to be some real concerns about the president’s security,” Panette concluded. “Even he himself basically admitted the concern about his personal security. So for all of those reasons, I think that a decision was made to try to protect the safety of the presidency.”
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