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OPINION

Is Congress Getting Serious About UFOs?

The opinions expressed by columnists are their own and do not necessarily represent the views of Townhall.com.
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When Wright-Patterson Air Force Base is in your back yard, you grow up hearing about the little green men stored in freezers and their saucer-shaped ships. It is a fact that whatever the government retrieved at Roswell ended up at Wright-Patterson, Ohio where Project Blue Book was headquartered between March 1952 and December 1969. 

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Project Blue Book was the code name for the U.S. Air Force’s investigation of Unidentified Flying Object (UFO) phenomena. It was initially directed by Captain Edward J. Ruppelt and followed similar projects established by the Air Force — Project Sign in 1947, and Project Grudge in 1948.

The results of these investigatory programs were, predictably, lackluster. Or, at least, the publicly available information pointed to mundane explanations of fantastical eye witness accounts. Officially, no physical evidence of any determinative value was ever submitted or collected by Project Blue Book. So, after the collection of over twelve thousand UFO reports, the books were closed by the official Air Force. 

But, in the public’s consciousness, those books were never closed. 

The investigative training and experience I gained from twenty years as an FBI Special Agent have only deepened my interest in UFO theories, testimony, and evidence (direct or circumstantial). And, I have resolved any personal theological questions concerning extraterrestrial life.  

Recently, the UFO acronym has fallen out of favor — an attempt to create distance from the stigmas associated with “flying saucers.” Unidentified Anomalous Phenomenon (UAP) is now in vogue. 

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If you want to get to the truth of the UFO/UAP question, why not consult the undisputed expert on the matter, Lue Elizondo — former director of the now famous Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP) for the Office of the Secretary of Defense. Well, I did — more on that later.

These days, you can openly talk about UFO’s or UAP’s in polite society without being immediately fitted for a straight jacket. We’ve been preconditioned to laugh it all away. Who would take little green men from Mars seriously? And, therein lies the genius. Mass manipulation is the stock-in-trade of intelligence agencies the world over. You can thank intrepid reporter George Knapp for this subject’s current credibility. 

Interestingly, Congress seems to be taking the UFO/UAP question very seriously. 

Senate Bill 2103 was introduced by Senator Mark Warner (D-VA) on 06-22-23. On its face, it’s titled rather innocuously as the Intelligence Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2024. Don’t doze off just yet…buried at the end of this ponderous piece of proposed legislation is a vein of UFO gold. 

Section 1104 titled Funding Limitations Relating to Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena, contains language that explicitly presupposes the existence of materials and objects that do not derive from terrestrial manufacture — UFO stuff. 

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In short, Section 1104 threatens to withhold funding from any governmental entity in possession of any UAP material, regardless of “special access or restricted access limitations.” Moreover, anyone with knowledge of or in possession of UAP materials has 60 days (from the enactment of this legislation) to “notify the Director of such possession…” 

The bombshell language is in subsection (d), “no later than 180 days” after the date of enactment, “(B) a comprehensive list of all non-earth origin or exotic [UAP] material” must be produced. That’s fairly unequivocal language. Congress is attempting to ascertain which governmental agencies may be in possession of non-earth origin UFO materials. And, coming forward within the proscribed time limits exempts any person from all legal consequence or culpability (subsection (e)). 

Former AATIP Director Lue Elizondo told Townhall, “I applaud Congress as a whole taking up this topic in the manner they are. I am also confident in the motivations by the core group leading the charge.”

Several weeks ago, Senator Marco Rubio (R-FL) spoke to News Nation at length and described whistleblower testimony regarding government possession of UAP materials. Rubio cited the Inspector General’s description of the testimony as a “credible and urgent concern.” 

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Getting to the bottom of the UFO question will certainly involve all of us as citizens and implicates some of our most cherished civil liberties. Mr. Elizondo told Townhall he credits “working staffers and their members” with the introduction of Senate Bill 2103, but particularly “Mr. Christopher Mellon. His experience on the Hill as a senior staffer, and later as a senior intelligence official, provided a unique opportunity to help Congress in a way that would not be possible otherwise.”

When asked about the likelihood of SB 2130 actually becoming law, Elizondo said, “I remain optimistic that the bill will become law. Enforcement will be up to the Executive Branch, which will hopefully do a better job than in previous years.”

With trust in the federal government’s three letter agencies at an all time low, it isn’t clear what the future holds for getting real answers. But, we can all take some comfort in knowing people like Mr. Elizondo are involved. His pledge, pinned to his Twitter profile is enlightening as to his character, “1. I will always tell you the truth. 2. I will own my mistakes and hold myself accountable…5. I will always push for full disclosure.” 

I know of a few FBI whistleblowers who could learn much from Mr. Elizondo’s creed and conduct. 

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In a limitless universe, it doesn’t seem unreasonable to speculate about extraterrestrial life. What that really means, and how it implicates national security, and our right to know what our government is doing behind that cloak, is much closer to being resolved with the introduction of SB 2103. 

The final answer to many of these questions may rely on the courage and veracity of whistleblowers. Mr. Elizondo’s final comment to Townhall was, “I encourage anyone who has information to come forward.” 

In my view, information of this gravity must be made public. Perhaps not specifics, but wouldn’t it be nice to know if there really are little green men at Wright-Patterson Air Force base? We’ll be closely watching the progress of SB 2103.

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