President Donald Trump speaks during a visit to the Fort Bragg U.S. Army base on Feb. 13, 2026, in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. (Nathan Howard / Getty Images)
By C. Douglas Golden February 20, 2026 at 8:24am
Following a busy week on the UFO front, President Donald Trump said that he was ordering files on aliens and their craft — to the extent we have them — released to the public.
The announcement, which occurred on Thursday night, came after a week of speculation following a podcast appearance from former President Barack Obama in which he said he thought aliens were “real” but “not being kept in Area 51.”
Well, if Trump gets his way, now you’ll get to hear about them firsthand.
“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), and any and all other information connected to these highly complex, but extremely interesting and important, matters,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social.
“GOD BLESS AMERICA!” he added.
💥👀 Trump on Truth Social: UFO Disclosure incoming. pic.twitter.com/Yd6EcrIXJE
— Joshua Reid | Redpills.tv (@realjoshuareid) February 20, 2026
The move comes after Obama said this on Brian Tyler Cohen’s podcast:
🔥🚨BREAKING: Former President Obama just confirmed aliens are real on a podcast.
“Are aliens real?”
Obama: “They’re real, but I haven’t seen them. They’re not being kept in uh what is it? Area 51. pic.twitter.com/Sukcyffo3Y
— Dom Lucre | Breaker of Narratives (@dom_lucre) February 14, 2026
Aliens, he said, are “real but I haven’t seen them.”
“They’re not being kept in Area 51. There’s no underground facility unless there’s this enormous conspiracy and they hid it from the president of the United States.”
Obama later “clarified” the remarks he made, saying that they were in “the spirit of the speed round.”
He said he’d seen “no evidence” during his presidency that aliens existed but thought that the odds we were alone were slim, even if the evidence of visitation was also “low.”
Trump, meanwhile, made some news by joking around about the appearance when questioned by Fox News reporter Peter Doocy on Air Force One:
Fox News’ Peter Doocy: “Barack Obama said that aliens are real. Have you seen any evidence of non-human visitors to Earth?”
President Trump: “Well, he gave classified information. He’s not supposed to be doing that.”
Fox News’ Peter Doocy: “So aliens are real?”
President… pic.twitter.com/3LeUJFeZuq
— RedWave Press (@RedWavePress) February 19, 2026
“Well, he gave classified information. He’s not supposed to be doing that,” Trump responded when asked about it.
Asked whether aliens were real, Trump continued, “Well I don’t know if they’re real or not,” but added that Obama “made a big mistake.”
“I may get him out of trouble if I declassify,” Trump added.
UFO disclosure odds spike 12% → 28% after Trump’s instruction
> Even Vitalik Buterin joined in this event
> Hi’s holds a huge NO position (~$148k)
My strategy is as follows:
I buy the event now at 84c and sell it at 95-99c
And I make a good profit of 12-17%
> Trump has… pic.twitter.com/geZepApDRl
— Alex (@de1lymoon) February 20, 2026
The odds of confirming alien life ripped 100% overnight on @Polymarket
Trump ordered release of classified UFO files today
We are seeing the classic playbook of prepping the masses for inevitable disclosure
I don’t expect a literal handshake or dinner between Trump and green… https://t.co/i8PicorHFu pic.twitter.com/Y9y5puQYa6
— KELLE (@0xKelle) February 20, 2026
Odds on UFO disclosure peaked on betting markets, leading to much speculation online.
However, even with the Pentagon creating the All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office, or AARO, in 2022 and congressional hearings on the matter over the past few years, no definitive evidence of a cause for unidentified anomalous phenomena — the modern terminology for unexplained objects in the sky most government and scientific bodies use — has emerged.
C. Douglas Golden is a writer who splits his time between the United States and Southeast Asia. Specializing in political commentary and world affairs, he’s written for Conservative Tribune and The Western Journal since 2014.
C. Douglas Golden is a writer who splits his time between the United States and Southeast Asia. Specializing in political commentary and world affairs, he’s written for Conservative Tribune and The Western Journal since 2014. Aside from politics, he enjoys spending time with his wife, literature (especially British comic novels and modern Japanese lit), indie rock, coffee, Formula One and football (of both American and world varieties).
Birthplace
Morristown, New Jersey
Education
Catholic University of America
Languages Spoken
English, Spanish
Topics of Expertise
American Politics, World Politics, Culture
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