Former U.S. President Barack Obama’s recent assertion that aliens are real has drawn criticism from his successor, Donald Trump, who alleges Obama disclosed classified information. The exchange highlights the ongoing, if often skeptical, interest in unidentified aerial phenomena at the highest levels of American government.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Thursday, February 19, 2026, Trump accused Obama of a “big mistake” in revealing information he claimed was classified. “He took this from confidential sources… He shouldn’t be doing that,” Trump said.
The former president’s comments came during an interview with podcast host Brian Tyler Cohen, published last weekend. When asked if extraterrestrials truly exist, Obama responded, “They are real, but I haven’t seen them, and they are 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.”
Area 51, a highly secretive Air Force installation in Nevada, has long been the subject of conspiracy theories alleging it houses extraterrestrial bodies and crashed spacecraft. Declassified CIA files from 2013, even though, state the site was used for testing ultra-secret spy planes.
Trump, when questioned on February 19th about whether he had seen evidence of alien existence, stated, “I don’t know if they’re real or not.”
The White House indicated it had no further comment on Trump’s remarks. The Obama Foundation did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Obama later clarified his position on Instagram, stating, “During my time as president, I did not see any evidence that extraterrestrials have contacted us. Seriously!” He explained his belief in the possibility of extraterrestrial life, citing the statistical probabilities given the vastness of the universe, while acknowledging the immense distances make visitation unlikely.
This exchange follows increased government attention to unidentified aerial phenomena. The Pentagon has in recent years undertaken efforts to investigate reports of unidentified flying objects, with senior military leaders stating in 2022 they had found no evidence of alien visitation.
A 2024 Pentagon report concluded that investigations conducted by the U.S. Government since the conclude of World War II have not found any evidence of extraterrestrial technology, and that most sightings have been misidentified as common objects and phenomena. The development underscores the challenges of investigating and verifying reports of unexplained aerial events.
