Congress is taking UAP whistleblower Grusch’s claims seriously
Chuck is still on vacation, but the UFO news just keeps coming hot and heavy, so Scott’s back with another solo episode to keep you up-to-date. We’ve got several stories this week, including an alleged secret Canadian UAP reverse engineering program and continued denials from the Pentagon. But the biggest story is that Congress is taking the claims of whistleblower David Grusch very seriously. We’ve got quotes from multiple Congresspeople as well as new UAP provisions written into the upcoming Intelligence Community Authorization Act that will remove funding from UAP programs that haven’t reported to Congress and a ticking clock for defense contractors to turn over any UFO material or information they got from the government, or face penalties!
Canadian UAP Program
- Canadian MP Larry Maguire sent a letter to Canada’s Minister of National Defence alleging Canada has secretly collaborated with other Five Eyes nations on UAP crash recoveries
- The letter, sent March 22, was titled “Defence Research and Development Canada in possession of recovered UAP material” was shared by investigative journalists Jeremy Corbell and George Knapp.
- “It has come to my attention through meetings with American officials that the US Senate… have been undertaking hearings with government and military subject matter experts on the recovery and exploitation of physical material from UAP.”
- “You may not be aware Defense Research and Development Canada has participated in efforts to analyze UAP, which is publicly traceable to circa 1950. This recovered foreign material is studied through the Five Eyes Foreign Material Program… I am writing to recommend you request a classified briefing, containing full sensitive and protected program information from your officials on the Government of Canada’s historical and ongoing efforts on analyzing recovered UAP material.”
- “I am concerned that expected upcoming public announcements will be coordinated with AUKUS, which could damage Canada’s credibility with our allies and the Canadian public on the global stage… It is imperative the Government of Canada have a communications plan to respond to these upcoming public revelations that will stem from these American Foreign Material Programs. Not only are there national security and aviation safety concerns that need to be addressed, but there will also be a larger debate about why there is a lack of transparency and accountability regarding UAP programs and policy.”
- When the story broke, the defense minister released a statement saying they “confirmed that neither Defence Research and Development Canada or Canadian Forces Intelligence Command are involved in any type of formal analysis of UAP. In fact, all efforts to study UAP ceased in the 1960s.”
- Ross Coulthart, who has been strongly implying that he knows more about this story, tweeted “Important to note that the official Canadian response is NOT a denial that Canadians are working with the US on a UAP crash retrieval and reverse engineering program. It’s very carefully worded to deny that neither DRDC nor CFINTCOM are involved. Why no broad Government denial?”
Pentagon continues to deny Grush’s claims
- Two weeks ago, DoD spokesperson Susan Gough released a statement: “To date, AARO has not discovered any verifiable information to substantiate claims that any programs regarding the possession or reverse-engineering of extraterrestrial materials have existed in the past or exist currently.”
- When asked this week about AARO lacking Title 50 access, Gough said “By law, AARO may receive all UAP-related information, including any classified national security information involving military, intelligence, and intelligence-related activities, at all levels of classification regardless of any restrictive access controls, special access programs, or compartmented access programs.
- Ross Coulthart pointed out more weasel words here. AARO can receive information, but without Title 50, they can’t compel it.
No Comment from Lockheed Martin
- ABC news reporter Barnett Parker sent a note to Lockheed Martin PR people asking about rumors they’ve received recovered UAP, and if they were aware of the law that would compel them to share with Congress.
- Their response: “Your questions will be best addressed by the AARO office within DOD.”
- Ross Coulthart commented: “Great question, but there’s an obvious follow-up here: Why can’t Lockheed Martin answer such a basic question? Why should a DOD UAP investigation office have to speak for a public company on whether they possess retrieved non-human technology?”
Congress is taking Grusch Seriously
- R Sen. Josh Hawley says the government has downplayed the number of UFO sightings:
- “The government has admitted that there have been all kinds of unidentified aerial platforms, there have been all sorts of sightings of these over the years that are unaccounted for. We don’t know what these are exactly, and these have been around our military bases, other sensitive installations, nuclear plants. The number of these is apparently huge, huge. And that is something that the government has… downplayed, if not kept from the public, for a long, long time.”
- “This whistleblower, I don’t know about the details of his allegations, in terms of true or false. But he’s saying that the government knows more about this than they have previously let on. That doesn’t really surprise me. Because it looks to me like the government has been tracking these UAPs for a long time now, and has not been saying much about it.”
- “What we learned from the Chinese spy balloon incident is that one part of the government actively concealed it from other parts of the government. The CIA, the NSA, our intelligence agencies, they knew about the spy balloon really early, but they kept that from other parts of the military. The military didn’t know about it until it was over Alaska. …Some of the details that he’s alleging sound plausible, based on what I’ve seen this government do in other instances,”
- Sen Marco Rubio says Grusch was credibly vetted and referred to Congress:
- “We’ve begun the process to hear from the whistleblower. The inspector general has deemed it an urgent and credible threat… that’s how it’s been referred to us. Those claims (that Special Access Programs have been hidden from Congress) have been made for years, and that’s certainly something we’d be very disturbed by—and that’s what the gist of the whistleblower’s claim is, that there are programs that should have been notified to Congress that were not. We’ve heard those claims in the past. This is the first one that’s gone through this process.”
- Rubio also told NewsNation that multiple individuals with “very high clearances and high positions within our government… have come forward to share… first-hand claims beyond the realm of what [the Senate Intelligence Committee] has ever dealt with. There are people that have come forward to share information with our committee over the last couple of years. … I want to be very protective of these people. A lot of these people came to us even before protections were in the law for whistleblowers to come forward. We’re trying to gather as much of that information as we can. Some of these people still work in the government, and frankly, a lot of them are very fearful of their jobs, fearful of their clearances, fearful of their career, and some, frankly, are fearful of harm coming to them.”
- When asked if he found these additional witnesses credible, he said “I find most of these people, at some point, or maybe even currently, have held very high clearances, in high positions within our government. So, you start asking, you do ask yourself… what incentive would so many people with that kind of qualifications… these are serious people… to come forward and make something up?”
- Sen Intel Committee Chair Mark Warner says the government has hidden programs from Congress in the past:
- “We take whistleblowers very seriously. The committee has met with him, you know, staff have, but we take him seriously.”
- [do you think there are any SAPs hidden from Congress?]
- “Listen, I hope not, but over the years, sometimes, I think by mistake, but there’s not a perfect record.”
- Sen Kirsten “UFO Mama Bear” Gillibrand on open hearings with Grusch:
- “So, we’re trying to schedule a meeting with the whistleblower, so we can ask him questions directly. And then we are also going to try to schedule meetings with the people he mentions in his whistleblowing complaint. If the whistleblower wants it classified, we’ll do it classified. If he’s willing to do it open, we’ll do it open. And I don’t know—I’ll have to assess if there’s classified information that he’s giving us. So, we’ll create the right setting regardless, and then hopefully, he’ll come in. This is an extremely layered thing to get to the bottom of, because the allegations are very serious.”
- She also announced that she secured full funding for AARO in the upcoming NDAA, following Pentagon underfunding in 2023.
- The Senate Intelligence Committee unanimously approved the new Intelligence Authorization Act for 2024, which includes new UAP provisions:
- Defense contractors in possession of UAP-related material (specifically, “all non-earth origin or exotic UAP material) or information obtained from or through the U.S. government must voluntarily disclose it to AARO within 60 days, and make the information or materials available for assessment, analysis, and inspection within 180 days. Contractors who comply will face no criminal or civil actions for receiving material or information.
- Another provision will withdraw funding from any SAPs that have not been described, explained and justified to the appropriate committees of Congress. Specifically, it includes language targeting programs that recover or analyze “non-earth origin or excotic” craft or materials.
- Expected to be signed into law in December, so contractors would have until March to disclose what they have to AARO.
- Chris “UFO Daddy” Mellon: “The Senate Intelligence and Armed Services committees continue to make serious efforts to uncover the truth of long-standing allegations that the USG has recovered off-world technology. This is a testament to the credibility of the information reaching the committees on this subject, not just from David Grusch by many others as well… Congress’ determination to investigate credible reports… is immensely important. I’m confident that if they continue on this path, and obtain the data already provided to the IC IG, the truth will come to light: ”
- What’s next?
- Congress currently on a two week July 4th recess, back for three weeks, to be followed by a month-long August recess.
- House Oversight Committee hearing, led by Rep Tim Burchette and Rep Anna Luna, is likely to be open, and happen in July, featuring Grusch as a witness.
- Senate Select Committee on Intelligence briefing, likely led by Marco Rubio and Kirsten Gillibrand, is expected to include both closed and open sessions, potentially with Grusch and others as witnesses. Not yet scheduled.
- The next AARO briefing is due on August 1st.
References:
- The New York Times: Ezra Klein Interviews Leslie Kean (Transcript)
- Liberation Times: Bombshell Letter Reveals Canadian Politician’s Concerns Of Covert UFO Programs Involving Canada And Five Eyes Alliance
- MP Larry Maguire’s letter claiming Canada’s DARPA has UAP material
- Daniel Otis: Canadian defense minister denies allegations of crash recovery
- Ross Coulthart: Canadian response is not a broad government denial
- NewsNation: US has ‘downplayed’ the number of UFO sightings: Senator Hawley
- Matt Laslo: Rubio says UAP whistleblower first credibly vetted, referred to Congress
- Matt Laslo: Intel Chair Warner says gov’t has hidden programs from Congress in past
- Matt Laslo: Gillibrand scheduling hearings with UAP whistleblower David Grusch
- Liberation Times: Pentagon Unable To Confirm Or Deny Discovery Of Materials Originating From Non-Human Intelligences Or Unknown Origin Within Secretive Programs
- Douglas Dean Johnson: Senate Intelligence bill gives holders of “non-earth origin or exotic UAP material” six months to make it available to AARO
- Liberation Times: Senate Intelligence Committee Proposes Amnesty to Defense Contractors for Disclosure of ‘Non-Earth Origin or Exotic Materials’ in Approved UFO Language
- The Hill: Congress doubles down on explosive claims of illegal UFO retrieval programs
- NewsNation: Rubio: Recent UFO whistleblower isn’t the only one
- NY Mag: Marco Rubio Says He’s Heard Shocking ‘Firsthand’ Accounts of UFOs
- Matt Laslo: Rep. Burchett hopes to hold public UAP hearing in July
- Chris Mellon on Senate uncovering truth of off-world tech .
- Chris Mellon on Congress pursuing evidence of off-world tech .
- Gillibrand Secures Full Funding For UAP Office In Senate Defense Bill Markup
- Barnett Parker: Lockheed refers UAP question to AARO
- Ross Coulthart: Why should AARO have to answer for Lockheed?
Episode 20, posted on