Marco Rubio recently shared an oddly revealing behind-the-scenes detail about life aboard Air Force One when he’s traveling with Donald Trump.
Rubio, the current US Secretary of State and America’s equivalent of the UK foreign secretary, often joins Trump on long overseas trips. According to him, those flights come with an unusual challenge: avoiding the president during his late-night wanderings around the plane.
In an interview with New York Magazine, Rubio explained that Trump, now 79, prides himself on needing very little sleep. During long flights, the president reportedly leaves his private cabin and walks the aircraft’s corridors to see who’s still awake.
Rubio admitted that to dodge these encounters, he resorts to a bit of strategic camouflage.
Air Force One includes a small office with two couches, and Rubio says he deliberately curls up there in a way that makes him look like a low-level staffer who nodded off. He described wrapping himself tightly so that he appears completely cocooned, joking that he looks “like a mummy.”
The reason, he said, is simple: optics.
Rubio explained that he doesn’t want Trump to see the Secretary of State asleep and interpret it as a sign of weakness. His goal is for the president to assume it’s just an exhausted aide catching a nap, not a senior cabinet member resting mid-flight.
The anecdote arrives as Trump nears his 80th birthday in June and amid renewed scrutiny of his own stamina. Trump recently pushed back against claims that he appeared to fall asleep during a Cabinet meeting, after photos circulated showing his eyes closed.
Addressing reporters, Trump insisted he wasn’t dozing off, saying the meeting had simply dragged on. He claimed he closed his eyes out of boredom, not fatigue, adding bluntly that he just wanted the session to end.
The moment also drew comparisons to Trump’s long-running habit of mocking President Joe Biden as “Sleepy Joe,” a nickname he frequently used to question Biden’s age and energy.
Rubio’s story, while lighthearted on the surface, offers a glimpse into the unusual power dynamics and perceptions that still shape Trump’s inner circle even at 35,000 feet.
0 Comments
Do you agree or disagree with this update? Share your thoughts and see what others think!