(NewsNation) — As in decades past, the question of whether aliens exist continues to captivate Americans.
The House held a second hearing following a widely-watched congressional hearing on UAPs and UFOs last year that prompted people to flock to social media, many proclaiming the government confirmed aliens exist.
But that’s not actually what happened at the hearing. While witnesses and lawmakers discussed the issue of UFOs, the government has not issued any official confirmation of alien life, and what was said at the hearing by witnesses and even a lawmaker remains unverified.
“Excessive secrecy has led to grave misdeeds against loyal public servants, military personnel and the public, all to hide the fact that we are not alone in the cosmos,” said Pentagon insider Luis Elizondo.
Here’s what we do (and don’t) know after both hearings:
- Whistleblower David Grusch largely recounted second-hand testimony and provided no evidence to support his claims. Grusch is a former member of the UAP Task Force.
- Former Navy Commander and pilot David Fravor recounted a first-hand experience with the so-called ‘Tic Tac’ UFO but said he was never briefed on the object or its potential origins.
- Former Navy pilot Ryan Graves, who founded the Americans for Safe Aerospace, also recounted an encounter he had with an object he described as a black sphere floating inside a clear cube. Graves indicated such encounters were extremely common among pilots. There was no evidence presented to support this claim.
- While lawmakers seemed largely accepting of the witness testimony, only Rep. Matt Gaetz, R.-Fla., said he had seen any evidence of alien life firsthand.
- Grusch was unable to answer a number of inquiries regarding specific evidence or proof in an open setting, though he indicated he would be willing to say more in a secure, classified briefing.
- All three witnesses agreed these unidentified objects constituted a potential national security threat.
- Official government bodies, including the White House, Pentagon, and NASA have all stated they have no reason to believe unexplained objects are extraterrestrial in nature.
- National Security Council Spokesman John Kirby said after the hearing there are “no hard and fast” answers to the question but that the administration is taking it seriously.
- Retired Navy Rear Adm. Timothy Gallaudet supported claims of secret UAP programs, decrying a government policy of secrecy around the subject.
- Elizondo testified that the Pentagon is operating a secret UAP retrieval program and is even in possession of nonhuman remains, though he declined to answer more specific questions in a public setting.
- Elizondo also noted that no human could survive the level of g-forces UAPs would appear to be subject to, raising the question of what life looks like.
- He also said nonhuman intelligence has communicated with us, though not in verbal form.
- Independent journalist Michael Shellenberger testified that he has sources who are aware of secret UAP programs, including one called “Immaculate Constellation.”
- Former NASA administrator Michael Gold did not offer an opinion on the origin of UAPs but called for destigmatization and the use of NASA data to allow scientists to conduct rigorous research on encounters.
These hearings weren’t the first time the U.S. government undertook investigations to address the question of UFOs, nor was it the first time the official response was that there was nothing “alien” going on.
However, at the heart of Grusch’s whistleblower complaint is his claim that the government, specifically the Department of Defense, is operating programs to retrieve material from crashes that are extraterrestrial in nature and are keeping those programs secret from the public while also operating without appropriate Congressional oversight.
Grusch spoke exclusively to NewsNation regarding his experiences, which he said include the U.S. government recovering the “non-human” pilots of downed craft.
In light of his claims, lawmakers on the House Oversight Committee have vowed to continue to hold more hearings, including classified briefings where Grusch could speak more freely. Members have also vowed to seek the power to subpoena documents and images that Grusch says back up his claims.
Lawmakers have also called for a centralized reporting system for both military and civilian reports of UFOs, to better analyze and understand the possible threat.
There is also the possibility of the creation of a new committee to specifically investigate UAPs/UFOs. It’s not entirely clear how Congress could compel the DoD or military to release information on any secret programs, should they exist, though, in the past, lawmakers have attempted to work UFO reporting into funding requirements for the Pentagon.
The Senate has also announced plans for a UAP hearing in coming weeks, though no date has been set.