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“The aliens are coming!” That’s the headline-making reaction after former President Barack Obama said on a recent podcast that he believes aliens exist, even though he has never seen them personally.
The eye-catching comments sparked a frenzy, with President Donald Trump responding sharply. He claimed that Obama had actually revealed classified information. What started as podcast chatter turned into a full-blown political UFO storm. Welcome to America’s never-ending fascination with far-away galaxies.
As the intergalactic debate took center stage, Trump posted this on Truth Social:
“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).”
The networks and major news outlets — not just fringe ones like Weekly World News, The Globe, and The National Enquirer, which used to own the alien beat with photos of strange-looking, big-headed creatures — joined the fray. Is this really driving the news cycle? But Trump is right on this point: it appears there is still great interest in alien life. It’s the perfect media frenzy, since it will never be proven or disproven in our lifetimes.
Fox’s senior White House correspondent Peter Doocy went straight for it aboard Air Force One. “So aliens are real?”
Trump responded: “Well, I don’t know if they’re real or not. I never talk about it. A lot of people do. A lot of people believe it. Do you believe it, Peter?”
Special Report anchor Bret Baier later went live to the White House with an update, saying that Trump’s comments to Doocy “raised a lot of eyebrows.” Reporter Aishah Hasnie added, “It has, and at least one Hill Republican tonight is telling me he is reading this as the president all but confirming what Obama said.”
But here’s the reality check: Trump did not confirm aliens exist or claim he has evidence. He seems — cue the Twilight Zone music here — more triggered by Obama. So how in the world is that classified?
Still, the intrigue grew when his daughter-in-law, Lara Trump, floated the idea that the president may soon give a speech about extraterrestrial life.
White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt responded with a laugh. “A speech on aliens would be news to me.”
NBC’s Nightly News opened its show with this: “Former President Obama lit up the internet by speculating about alien life…” At the end of the broadcast, one reporter questioned, “Does the government have hard data on aliens?” and, “What about all of those UFOs that Navy pilots have reported?”
NBC also noted that Obama clarified his comments after they went viral. He explained he was talking about the statistical likelihood of life somewhere in the universe but too far away to reach our galaxy, not alien visitors landing here on Earth.
The Washington Post’s Michael Shermer has been covering the phenomenon for years, pointing out that there have been congressional hearings on the topic and that the Pentagon established a secret Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program to investigate reports of UFOs.
He has a more cosmic take. “I have come to the conclusion that aliens are sky gods for skeptics, deities for atheists, and a secular alternative to replace the rapidly declining religiosity in the West — particularly in the US and United Kingdom, where most UAP sightings are made.”
So what should we make of all this out-of-this-world media coverage? Maybe liberal comedian and late-night NBC host Seth Meyers, who predicted seven months ago that Trump would start talking about aliens, is overstating the case a bit. But his larger point — that this could serve as a distraction from Trump’s alleged involvement in Jeffrey Epstein’s pedophilia conviction — sounds more plausible.
“I honestly think we’re just one Epstein story away from Trump announcing that UFOs are real.”
Having lived and worked in Washington as a journalist for more than 35 years, I can attest that the nation’s capital is a strange place. In this town, even extraterrestrials can become part of the daily briefing. But this one feels a little — well — out there.
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Lauren Ashburn is a weekly television columnist for Barrett Media, and the founder of Ashburn Media Company. She is a television veteran who has anchored and executive produced network and cable news programs, and served as a contributor to Fox News, the Daily Beast and PBS NewsHour. Her written work has been published by The Washington Post and Wall Street Journal, and she appears on television talking about media and politics. Ashburn has interviewed US Presidents, members of Congress, high-profile celebrities, and covered political conventions and debates. She has even reported on the Iraq War from the front lines, covered 9/11 from the Pentagon, and anchored from the US/Mexico border. You can find her on X at @LaurenAshburn.
A graduate of Columbia Journalism School’s master’s program, Ashburn was also Managing Editor of Gannett Broadcasting and USA Today Live and Managing Editor and Anchor of the evening news on EWTN. She is the founder of Ashburn Media Company.