Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., said Thursday that it would be “incredible” and even “bipartisan” if President Donald Trump moved to declassify government files related to extraterrestrials, following a fresh round of controversy sparked by former President Barack Obama’s recent comments on the subject.
Fetterman made the remarks during an appearance on Fox News’ “Jesse Watters Primetime,” where he weighed in on Trump’s response to Obama’s claim that aliens are “real.”
Earlier Thursday, speaking aboard Air Force One, President Trump accused Obama of improperly divulging classified information when discussing extraterrestrials in a recent interview.
“He gave classified information. He’s not supposed to be doing that. I don’t know if they’re real or not… I can tell you he gave classified information. He made a big mistake,” Trump told Fox News correspondent Peter Doocy.
Trump later joked that he might be able to “get him out of trouble” by declassifying alien-related files himself.
Fetterman appeared open to that possibility.
“That’d be incredible,” the Pennsylvania Democrat said. “I grew up watching The X-Files. Now if he’s going to release all of the X files, I think that could be a bipartisan thing to finally realize what’s happening.”
The senator’s comments suggest that, at least on the issue of government transparency surrounding unidentified phenomena, there could be rare common ground between the outspoken Democrat and the Republican president.
Fetterman also noted that he agrees with Obama on a broader point: that it is logical to believe extraterrestrial life could exist somewhere in the vast universe.
Obama’s original remarks set off a firestorm of online speculation and debate. In a recent interview, the former president stated, “They’re real, but I haven’t seen them, and they’re not being kept in Area 51,” adding that there is no “underground facility.”
Those comments quickly gained traction on social media, prompting widespread discussion and renewed interest in long-standing questions about government secrecy and unidentified aerial phenomena.
Facing the surge of attention, Obama later issued a follow-up clarification.
“I was trying to stick with the spirit of the speed round, but since it’s gotten attention let me clarify,” he wrote. “Statistically, the universe is so vast that the odds are good there’s life out there. But the distances between solar systems are so great that the chances we’ve been visited by aliens is low, and I saw no evidence during my presidency that extraterrestrials have made contact with us.”
Trump’s criticism focused on whether Obama’s initial comments crossed a line into discussing classified material. The president did not elaborate on what specific information he believed had been improperly disclosed, but he maintained that Obama “made a big mistake.”
As speculation continues, the exchange has fueled broader conversations about transparency, classified information, and what the federal government may know about extraterrestrial life.
For now, the idea of declassifying alien-related files remains speculative. But with a Democratic senator calling it “bipartisan” and a Republican president hinting he might take action, the debate over what Americans should know about the unknown appears far from over.
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