Officials Reveal a Secret Ruse to Evacuate Trump, and the F.D.A. Takes On a Food Safety Loophole
August 11, 2026
AI Summary
5 min readA Secret Decoy Operation, a Food Safety Overhaul, and a Quake in Colombia
The most striking revelation in this episode comes from a previously undisclosed security operation: President Trump was secretly evacuated from a NATO summit in Turkey last month using an elaborate ruse. Two senior U.S. officials told the Times that after intelligence indicated a credible threat against the president from Iran, officials developed a plan in a matter of hours to deceive both the press and the public about Trump's whereabouts. Reporters who boarded an older Air Force One were told to pull down their window shades before takeoff, believing they were traveling with the president. In reality, Trump had been hidden inside a large catering container lowered from the other side of the plane and whisked away to a third aircraft. He was flown to a military base in Britain, where he reboarded the older plane out of sight before stepping out through the main door as usual. The White House staff on the decoy plane served as unknowing participants. One former Secret Service agent who worked protective details for Presidents Obama and Bush said the agency had used decoy motorcades and flights before, but this remains an unusual case of the public being deliberately deceived about the commander-in-chief's location.
Closing the "Generally Recognized as Safe" Loophole
Continue reading the full summary in the app — free to try.
Read Full Summary →Free • No credit card required
Never miss an episode of The Headlines
Get every new episode summarized in your inbox — free, ~5 minutes to read.
No spam. Unsubscribe anytime.
What you'll learn
- 1 (00:45) **Secret Ruse to Evacuate Trump from NATO Summit** - The Times reveals an elaborate deception to secretly move the president after a credible threat from Iran.
- 2 (03:09) **FDA Targets "Generally Recognized as Safe" Loophole** - The Trump administration proposes a new rule to require companies to notify the FDA about new food ingredients and submit safety data.
- 3 (05:04) **Devastating 7.4 Magnitude Earthquake in Colombia** - The strongest quake in ten years hits a rural area, affecting major cities like Cali and leaving over 100 dead.
- 4 (06:44) **Taiwan Simulates Internet Shutdown to Prepare for Chinese Attack** - The government deliberately slowed phone internet access for 30 minutes as part of an annual exercise.
- 5 (09:06) **Harry Potter Fans Force Rerouting of Multi-Million Dollar Cable Project** - A project manager accidentally sparked outrage by planning to run an underwater cable under a Welsh beach that houses a shrine to Dobby the House Elf.
- 6 Standout Quotes
- 7 "It's been the wild west for them for long enough." - A food policy expert on the FDA's proposed changes to the GRAS loophole.
+ Full timestamped outline available in the app
Show Notes
Plus, when you accidentally upset “Harry Potter” fans.
Here’s what we’re covering:
Trump Said to Have Secretly Used Military Jet to Leave Turkey Amid Threats, by Maggie Haberman, Eric Schmitt and Zolan Kanno-Youngs
F.D.A. Moves Toward Tighter Restrictions on Food Ingredients, by Alice Callahan and Dani Blum
Taiwan Gingerly Tests How It Would Cope if China Choked Its Internet, by Chris Buckley and Amy Chang Chien
What We Know About the Earthquake in Colombia, by John Yoon
How ‘Harry Potter’ Fans Protected Dobby’s Grave From a Power Cable, by Claire Moses
Tune in every weekday morning, and tell us what you think at: [email protected].
Subscribe today at nytimes.com/podcasts or on Apple Podcasts and Spotify. You can also subscribe via your favorite podcast app here https://www.nytimes.com/activate-access/audio?source=podcatcher. For more podcasts and narrated articles, download The New York Times app at nytimes.com/app.
Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.
More from this podcast
The Headlines →