Former U.S. President Barack Obama’s surprising remarks on the possibility of extraterrestrial life have reignited the century-old debate on aliens prompting President Donald Trump to quickly order a review and release of government files related to unidentified flying objects (UFO) and aliens.
The renewed focus followed a wide-ranging interview Obama gave to journalist Brian Tyler Cohen, published over the weekend, in which he addressed long-running speculation around Area 51 and government secrecy. Obama initially dismissed claims of hidden alien facilities, saying, “there’s no underground facility, unless there’s this enormous conspiracy, and they hid it from the president of the United States.”
The comments quickly spread online, triggering speculation and forcing Obama issue a clarification stating that he was speaking in statistical terms rather than suggesting or confirming any extraterrestrial contact. “Statistically, the universe is so vast that the odds are good there’s life out there,” Obama said. He added further that “the distances between solar systems are so great that the chances we’ve been visited by aliens is low, and I saw no evidence during my presidency that extraterrestrials have made contact with us. Really!”
The interview revived a topic that has long captured public imagination and political attention in the United States. A 2021 Pew Research Center survey found that 65 percent of Americans believe intelligent life exists on other planets, underscoring why such remarks continue to resonate widely.
Trump’s Move Overshadows Attention on Obama Remarks
Questions about Obama’s comments were put directly to Trump by reporters aboard Air Force One on Thursday. Trump said he did not know whether aliens were real, but suggested that Obama may have revealed sensitive information, claiming the former president had disclosed “classified information” in his remarks.
Within hours, Trump escalated the issue by announcing a formal directive to the Pentagon and other agencies. In a post on Truth Social, he said he had instructed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth to begin identifying and releasing any government records related to extraterrestrial life and unexplained aerial sightings.
“Based on the tremendous interest shown, I will be directing the Secretary of War, and other relevant Departments and Agencies, to begin the process of identifying and releasing Government files related to alien and extraterrestrial life, unidentified aerial phenomena (UAP), and unidentified flying objects (UFOs), and any and all other information connected to these highly complex, but extremely interesting and important, matters,” Trump wrote.
Rare Step in UFO History
The announcement marks a rare instance of a sitting president explicitly ordering a review of alien-related material, even as U.S. officials have consistently stopped short of linking unexplained aerial encounters to extraterrestrial origins. In recent years, the Pentagon has acknowledged reports from military pilots involving unidentified aerial phenomena, adopting the UAP terminology to avoid the stigma historically associated with UFOs.
Trump’s directive aligns with his long-standing, often cautious public posture on the subject. During his first term, he confirmed receiving briefings on reported UFO sightings by U.S. Navy pilots but expressed doubt about their significance. “I did have one very brief meeting on it,” he told ABC News in 2019. “People are saying they’re seeing UFOs. Do I believe it? Not particularly.”
That skepticism has remained consistent. In a 2019 interview with Tucker Carlson, Trump said, “Well, I don’t want to really get into it too much. But personally, I tend to doubt it. I’m not a believer, but you know, I guess anything is possible.”
When Trump Claime to Know More Than What He Shared Publicly
Trump has also suggested at times that he knows more than he has publicly shared. When asked by his son, Donald Trump Jr., in 2020 about revealing “what’s really going on with Roswell,” Trump responded: “I won’t talk to you about what I know about it, but it’s very interesting.”
More recently, Trump reiterated his doubts during a 2024 appearance on Joe Rogan’s podcast, saying he had never been a believer despite hearing claims from others. Later that year, he told Fox News host Greg Gutfeld that questions about aliens and Area 51 were among the most frequent he received from the public. He also recounted pilots describing encounters with a “round object going faster than my F-22.”
For now, Trump has offered no timeline for when documents might be released or how extensive the disclosures could be. It also remains unclear what role national security considerations may play in limiting access to classified material. What is clear is that Obama’s remarks have once again pushed the issue of extraterrestrial life into the center of public attention.
Trump Orders Files Release on Aliens After Obama Remarks, But No Timeframe added by Sridhar P on
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