Marco Rubio Recalls Bizarre Air Force One Scare After Officials Feared Passenger Was Dead

WASHINGTON — Secretary of State Marco Rubio has revealed an unusual incident aboard Air Force One in which he and other senior officials reportedly spent roughly 90 minutes trying to determine whether a person sleeping in a conference room might actually be experiencing a serious medical emergency.

Rubio recounted the episode during an appearance on the Katie Miller Podcast, describing a situation that began with uncertainty and gradually became concerning as the individual appeared to remain completely unresponsive.

According to Rubio, the officials were returning from China when they noticed the person asleep in a conference room aboard the presidential aircraft. Despite considerable activity and noise around the individual, there appeared to be little or no response.

That left Rubio and others facing an awkward dilemma: Should they wake the person, contact a doctor or simply allow the individual to continue sleeping?

Rubio said the officials hesitated because there was always the possibility that nothing was wrong and that the person was simply enjoying an unusually deep sleep.

The alternative, however, was far more troubling.

“If they were dead, like what do you do?” Rubio recalled asking.

The concern reportedly increased because the person did not appear to respond to surrounding stimuli, while Rubio said the individual’s breathing pattern seemed unusual.

Despite the uncertainty, the officials apparently did not immediately summon a physician or attempt to wake the person. Instead, they continued debating how to handle the situation.

Eventually, the mystery was resolved without an emergency.

“Luckily, the person was fine,” Rubio said.

Rubio did not identify the individual involved, and no independent confirmation has emerged regarding the person’s identity. Social-media users nevertheless began offering their own theories, including joking suggestions about prominent political figures.