How to hide a president in plain sight: Trump’s catering caper had a Clinton precedent

The catering caper involving President Donald Trump's secret departure from Turkey was not the first of its kind. Nearly 26 years earlier, in 2000, Bill Clinton executed a similarly deceptive maneuver in Pakistan, now known as a presidential decoy. On March 25, 2000, Clinton landed first in Islamabad on a Gulfstream C-20 executive jet marked with US Presidential markings.

Moments later, a Secret Service agent resembling Clinton exited the plane while it taxied away. Ten minutes later, an unmarked C-20, painted in off-white and silver colors, landed carrying the actual president. Clinton then emerged in a black limousine, continuing the deception with multiple identical cars. This maneuver was carried out due to the dangerous security environment in Pakistan, where terrorists might attempt to attack the president.

The precautions had been rehearsed weeks ahead of time. Clinton's stopover in Pakistan was the final episode of a landmark sub-continental presidential trip, following Jimmy Carter's 1978 visit to India.