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But of course they would say that.
Details of the three shootdowns by fighter jets in recent days are sparse, leaving a vacuum in Washington that is being filled by otherworldly speculation. Senators were told in a classified briefing Tuesday that the unidentified flying objects haven’t been retrieved yet, meaning the U.S. hasn’t been able to study them.
Asked whether Biden administration briefers ruled out extraterrestrial involvement, Sen. Mitt Romney (R., Utah) said, “I don’t know how you ever confirm that” with a laugh.
“How would you know?” said Sen. Rick Scott (R., Fla.). “I don’t think you have enough information to say that.”
U.S. officials still don’t know how the objects were being propelled or who sent them, but say they were likely harmless and certainly of this world.
Some lawmakers wouldn’t rule out extraterrestrial activity, perhaps not wanting to alienate concerned voters who are deluging them with questions about the prospect of invaders from the sky.
“I went grocery shopping this weekend when I was home, and I will have to say, that was the most asked question I got,” Sen. Katie Britt (R., Ala.) said, when queried about possible alien involvement. “People want to know that they’re safe and that our homeland is safe.”
Sen. Mark Kelly (D., Ariz.), the only current senator who has actually been to space as an astronaut, said he couldn’t confirm any close encounters.
“I haven’t seen ’em,” Mr. Kelly said, making a beeline for the elevator after votes. “So if they’re green? They’ve got big eyes? I would say yes,” he joked as the elevator doors closed.
The talk of possible alien visitors has been fueled by the mystery surrounding the objects. After shooting down what officials say was a Chinese surveillance balloon earlier this month, officials have been far less forthcoming about the subsequent contacts.
The community that believes in extraterrestrials has been buoyed by the discoveries of the past week.
“If it is the visitors it won’t surprise me. I learned long ago never to second-guess that remarkable, complex and secretive presence,” said Whitley Strieber, a writer who says he was abducted by aliens in 1985.
Mark Rodeghier, the scientific director of Center for UFO Studies, remains skeptical, saying he hasn’t seen evidence that these are “core UFO phenomena”—in part because the military was able to shoot them down with mere missiles.
Washington has found itself in a frenzy over flying objects before. In July 1952, a series of sightings over the capital of bright lights caused authorities to scramble F-94 jets from Delaware’s New Castle Air Force Base. The pilots were unable to find anything. A headline on the front page of the Washington Post read: “ ‘Saucer’ Outran Jet, Pilot Says; Air Force Puts Lid on Inquiry.”
Gen. Glen VanHerck, commander of the North American Aerospace Defense Command and U.S. Northern Command revived worries about a possible war of the worlds. On Sunday, he told reporters he wasn’t ruling out anything, including extraterrestrial involvement, saying he’d “let the intel community and the counterintelligence community figure that out.”
A Defense Department official followed a few hours later with a statement saying there is “no indication of aliens or extraterrestrial activity with these recent takedowns.”
Officials say they still haven’t determined exactly what they were destroying, but defended the decision to shoot them down. The objects invaded airspace in different locations—over Alaska on Friday, Canada’s Yukon territory on Saturday and Lake Huron on Sunday.
Reported sightings of Unidentified Aerial Phenomena, known popularly as UFOs, have climbed significantly in the past two years, and almost half the new sightings remain unexplained, U.S. spy agencies and the Pentagon said in a report released last month.
The study led by the Office of the Director of National Intelligence said the number of UAP sightings—often by Navy and Air Force pilots—stands at 510, with 366 of those reports coming in since March 2021. Slightly more than half of the objects are likely unmanned aircraft, balloons or airborne debris, according to analysis by a new Pentagon office focused on the issue, but 171 remain “uncharacterized and unattributed,” the report said.
The objects the U.S. shot down in the past week were unmanned and no communications signals were detected, according to Department of Defense officials.
Last year, the House Intelligence Committee’s subcommittee on counterterrorism, counterintelligence and counterproliferation heard testimony from defense officials on reports of “unidentified aerial phenomena” and the risks they pose to national security. Aliens didn’t make an appearance in the testimony.
Some Republicans called for the president to give a national address to quash fears of anything. President Biden’s press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre tried to tamp down out-of-this-world rumors on Monday, saying with a chuckle, “I know there have been questions and concerns about this, but there is no—again, no indication—of aliens or extraterrestrial activity with these recent takedowns.”
Asked later in the same briefing about the possibility of aliens, National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said, “I don’t think the American people need to worry about aliens, with respect to these craft. Period.”
Still, Mr. Kirby couldn’t rule out that the objects were for surveillance.
The White House said Monday it planned to create a team expected to study airborne objects and the potential security and safety risks they pose. The new group would comprise elements of the Pentagon, the Federal Aviation Administration, the Department of Homeland Security and other government agencies, said U.S. officials.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D., N.Y.) has tapped Sen. Jon Tester (D., Mont.), who chairs the defense appropriations subcommittee, “to conduct a careful, bipartisan examination of these various incidents.”
Mr. Tester said he plans to hold hearings on the matter.
Asked if he could reassure the American people that aliens aren’t involved, he said, “Absolutely.” He then paused and smiled. “I don’t think.”
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