On Tuesday, Reuters reporter Gram Slattery said Donald Trump secretly left Air Force One in a catering truck after departing Turkey because of a reported Iranian assassination threat, while journalists and staffers remained on a decoy flight. The Washington Post first detailed the security maneuver, which reportedly left Slattery unaware he was being used as bait. Slattery told TMZ Live that the Secret Service asked passengers to close their window blinds during the flight, a move that drew complaints at the time but may have helped conceal Trump’s exit. Slattery also recalled Trump telling him, “If I go, you go,” a line that landed very differently after the reported escape became public. Why Were Reporters Left in the Dark? Slattery said foreign correspondents understand that security operations can require secrecy, but journalists are typically warned when they are knowingly exposed to danger. According to Slattery, the White House and Secret Service could have shared information off the record or under embargo once the threat passed, rather than letting the press discover the decoy operation weeks later. Richard Staropoli, a retired Secret Service agent, told TMZ that covert transportation tactics have been used for previous presidents and that the maneuver itself was not unprecedented. Staropoli still criticized the White House response, saying the silence added another layer of tension to an already strained relationship between Donald Trump and the media.