A new book has revealed that the magnitude of Iran's threat to Donald Trump's life during the 2024 presidential campaign was larger than previously thought, to the extent that at one point the then-candidate used a decoy plane amid fears he could be shot down.
The book in question is called "Revenge: The Inside Story of Trump's Return to Power." It was written by Alex Isenstadt and shows how much the threat impacted the now president. The author illustrates his point by recalling Trump's recent statement about leaving instructions to "obliterate" Iran if he were to be assassinated by its operatives, although he acknowledges Trump later tempered the statement by saying he wanted a "verified nuclear peace agreement."
"That would be a terrible thing for them to do," Trump warned. "If they did that, they would be obliterated. That'd be the end. I've left instructions. If they do it, they get obliterated. There won't be anything left," Trump said in early February.
The book, which had extensive access to Trump's inner circle during the campaign, details that at one point law enforcement warned him that Tehran had operatives in the U.S. who had access to surface-to-air missiles.
As officials worried Trump's plane could be targeted while taking of or landing, they decided to use a decoy plane owned by Steve Witkoff, now the administration's envoy to the Middle East. Isenstadt recalls that many staffers learned about the plane after not seeing Trump on the plane, worrying they would be "collateral damage" if the plane was indeed shot down.
It was not the only time when tensions ran high. The author recalls other episodes, such as one in September when the Secret Service warned campaign leaders that someone might attempt to shoot up Trump's motorcade after a campaign rally. "Don't f**king hang out the window and take photos, because you're a f**king target," campaign co-chair Chris LaCivita reportedly told Trump. Agents also noted a drone following the motorcade the next week during a trip to Pennsylvania, leading an officer to open the moonroof and shoot it with an electromagnetic gun.
The Justice Department said Iran also enlisted Farhad Shakeri, an Afghan national who escaped to Iran, to kill Trump in November 2024, AP News reported earlier this month.
Iranian officials denied the allegation, and its foreign ministry spokesman blamed Israel-linked circles for the ruse, claiming it wanted to further complicate US-Iran relations.
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