U.S. President Donald Trump took issue with former President Barack Obama appearing on a recent podcast and mentioning the possibility that aliens exist, criticizing that he "leaked classified information." Trump said the remarks were inappropriate conduct for a former president who handled state secrets. The back-and-forth is drawing attention because a current and a former president are trading barbs directly as public interest in unidentified flying objects (UFOs) and extraterrestrial life rises.
On the 19th, local time, according to the Washington Post (WP) and Fox News, Trump, when asked aboard Air Force One en route to Georgia about Obama's comments on aliens, raised his voice, saying, "He (Obama) gave classified information," and "That is something you should not do." He went on to stress repeatedly, "He made a big mistake."
While criticizing Obama, Trump himself struck a reserved tone about whether aliens exist, saying, "I don't know if they're real or not." He then zeroed in on a "security breach," saying, "What I can say is that he leaked classified information." Trump did not specify exactly what secrets Obama allegedly disclosed, but labeled the remarks themselves "a serious security breach."
The Washington Post noted, "Trump did not specify what classified information Obama supposedly shared," adding, "He has a history of attacking opponents with claims whose basis is unclear." Some interpret this as Trump, mindful that he himself was investigated in the past over allegations of mishandling classified documents, taking a posture of counterattacking Obama.
Former President Obama recently appeared on a popular host's podcast by the name of Brian Tyler Cohen and, when asked whether aliens exist, answered, "They are real. But I have never seen them." He added, "It's not that aliens are locked up in Area 51," and, "There is no underground facility where the government hatches a vast conspiracy and hides it even from the president." The tone was laced with humor, but the apparent openness by a former president to the reality of extraterrestrial life set off ripples.
As the controversy spread, Obama offered clarification a day later. Through Instagram, he said, "Statistically, the universe is so vast that the probability of life existing is high," but drew a line by adding, "However, given the vast distances between solar systems, it is unlikely that aliens have visited us." He also made clear that during his tenure he did not see evidence that aliens had made contact with Earth. His explanation was that what he said on the podcast was merely "cosmic math" based on scientific probability, not a disclosure of classified information.
In American society, the issue of aliens and UFOs is no longer just the realm of conspiracy theories. Since 2023, the U.S. Congress has held three hearings on unidentified anomalous phenomena (UAP). UAP, used instead of the term UFO, is the official term that encompasses all unidentified anomalies not only in the air but also in space and underwater. At a hearing in September last year, witness testimony was presented along with video that appeared to show a U.S. military drone engaging with an unidentified object.
The official U.S. government stance remains cautious. The All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office (AARO) under the Department of Defense said in a recent report that it found no verified evidence of extraterrestrial beings, activity, or technology. The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) likewise concluded in a report last September that there is no evidence UAPs originated from outside Earth. USA Today reported, "The Pentagon and NASA are maintaining the position that they have yet to discover definitive evidence of extraterrestrial life."
The BBC reported, "While Trump is ramping up his offensive by calling Obama's remarks a 'big mistake,' he is in fact piquing public curiosity by taking an ambiguous stance on the existence of aliens himself."