Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Trump addresses existence of UFOs as release of Pentagon report nears

‘I’m not such a believer, but some people are, so I don’t want to hurt their dreams or their fears,’ says Trump

Oliver O'Connell
New York
Monday 24 May 2021 16:38 EDT
Comments
Related Video: Marco Rubio claims US needs to tackle ‘stigma’ and take UFOs seriously

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

During an interview on Dan Bongino’s new radio show, Donald Trump was asked about the existence of UFOs in light of the upcoming release of a report on the phenomena.

In the first episode of Mr Bongino’s show in what was Rush Limbaugh’s timeslot, the conservative host asked the former president if there was something that the government wasn’t telling the public about unidentified flying objects.

“I’m a believer in what you see, but there are a lot people out there who are into that. I get that do much: ‘is it true, sir?” said Mr Trump.

“I’m not such a believer, but some people are, so I don’t want to hurt their dreams or their fears. It could be fears more than dreams.”

In June, the Pentagon is scheduled to release a report to Congress compiled by the Unidentified Aerial Phenomena Task Force.

More credence has been given to the phenomena in recent years since the release of military footage of fast-moving airborne objects off both the east and west coasts of the US.

Florida Senator Marco Rubio, the most senior Republican on the Senate Intelligence Committee, is leading the push for more investigation into the sightings.

This was not the first time that Mr Trump has been asked about UFOs.

In October 2020, Fox Business anchor Maria Bartiromo asked the then-president why the Department of Defense had set up a UFO task force and whether this implied that the government acknowledged their existence.

“Well, I’m going to have to check on that,” he replied. “I mean, I’ve heard that. I heard that two days ago. So I’ll check on that. I’ll take a good, strong look at that.”

Mr Trump then pivoted to talking about the strength of the US military implying that he felt the government was capable of responding to whatever the threat turned out to be, whether of this world or not.

Former president Barack Obama recently told James Corden in an interview that he had asked questions about extraterrestrial matters when the latest videos of the phenomena had been made public during his administration.

“When I came into office, I asked, is there the lab somewhere where we’re keeping the alien specimens and a spaceship?”

“They did a little bit of research and the answer is no,” he continued. “But what is true and I’m actually being serious here, is there are, there’s footage and records of objects in the skies that we don’t know exactly what they are.”

He added: “We can’t explain how they moved, their trajectory. They did not have an easily explainable pattern.”

Other former presidents have also looked into the phenomena. Bill Clinton had all the files reviewed on the famous incident in Roswell, New Mexico, but found nothing to share with the public.

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in