Trump Orders UFO Files to be Released

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Trump Orders UFO Files to be Released

(Headline USA) President Donald Trump said Thursday that he’s directing the Pentagon and other government agencies to identify and release files related to extraterrestrials and UFOs because of “tremendous interest.”

Trump made the announcement in a social media post hours after he accused former President Barack Obama of disclosing “classified information” when Obama recently suggested in a podcast interview that aliens were real.

Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One, “I don’t know if they’re real or not,” and said of Obama, “I may get him out of trouble by declassifying.”

In a post on his social media platform Thursday night, Trump said he was directing government agencies to release 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.”

Obama, who made his comments in a podcast appearance over the weekend, later clarified that he had not seen evidence that aliens “have made contact with us,” but said, “statistically, the universe is so vast that the odds are good there’s life out there.”

Trump told reporters Thursday that when it came to the prospect of extraterrestrial visitors: “I don’t have an opinion on it. I never talk about it. A lot of people do. A lot of people believe it.”

Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump suggested this week that he was ready to speak about it, however, when she said on a podcast that the president had a speech prepared to deliver on aliens that he would give at the “right time.”

That was news to the White House. Press secretary Karoline Leavitt responded with a laugh when she was asked about it Wednesday and told reporters, “A speech on aliens would be news to me.”

Public interest in unidentified flying objects and the possibility of the government hiding secrets of extraterrestrial life remerged in the public consciousness after a group of former Pentagon and government officials leaked Navy videos of unknown objects to The New York Times and Politico in 2017. The renewed scrutiny prompted Congress to hold the first hearings on UFOs in 50 years in May 2022, though officials said that the objects, which appeared to be green triangles floating above a Navy ship, were likely drones.

Since then the Pentagon has promised more transparency on the topic. In July 2022 it created the All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office, or AARO, which was intended to be a central place to collect reports of all military UFO encounters, taking over from a department task force.

In 2023, Dr. Sean Kirkpatrick, the head of AARO at the time, told reporters he didn’t have any evidence “of any program having ever existed as a to do any sort of reverse engineering of any sort of extraterrestrial (unidentified aerial phenomena).”

The information that has been made public shows that the vast majority of UFO reports made by the military go unsolved but the ones that are identified are largely benign in nature.

An 18-page unclassified report submitted to Congress in June 2024 said service members had made 485 reports of unidentified phenomena in the past year but 118 cases were found to be “prosaic objects such as various types of balloons, birds, and unmanned aerial systems.”

“It is important to underscore that, to date, AARO has discovered no evidence of extraterrestrial beings, activity, or technology,” the report stressed.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press

 

Suspect Steals Ambulance and Tries to Light it on Fire and Attack DHS Building

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Suspect Steals Ambulance and Tries to Light it on Fire and Attack DHS Building

(Headline USA) Authorities in Idaho were searching Thursday for a suspect who they said stole an ambulance outside a hospital, poured an accelerant over it and drove it into a nearby building that houses U.S. Department of Homeland Security offices.

Meridian Police Chief Tracy Basterrechea didn’t identify the substance poured on the inside and outside of the ambulance. “It appears the suspect was unable to ignite the accelerant before being scared off by responding agencies,” he said in a statement.

The incident occurred at about 11:10 p.m. Wednesday in the Boise suburb of Meridian, police said.

The suspect took the ambulance from St. Luke’s hospital and drove it north through a parking lot, Basterrechea said. The suspect then retrieved gas cans from nearby vegetation, he said.

Images broadcast on television show shattered glass doors at the entrance to an office building.

The building is owned by St. Luke’s Health System, and is one of several in a large business complex known as The Portico, next door to the hospital. Other tenants at Portico North include health insurance company SelectHealth Inc., St. Luke’s Home Health and Hospice and Quest Diagnostics.

The hospital has faced criticism for leasing space to the Department of Homeland Security while President Donald Trump’s administration carries out his immigration enforcement crackdown.

“There has been a lot of rhetoric” on the issue of the lease, Basterrechea said, adding that “comments on social media such as ‘property damage isn’t violence’ is absolutely false.”

He called the incident “a serious criminal act.”

“This was absolutely an act of violence, and if the suspect had not been interrupted, there is no doubt this building would have been burned, putting the lives of first responders and others at risk,” Basterrechea said.

He said his department was leading the investigation and was working with the Federal Bureau of Investigation, DHS and other agencies.

Adapted from reporting by the Associated Press

GOP Rep. Gonzalez Now Claims Blackmail in Dead Staffer Affair Case

Luis Cornelio
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GOP Rep. Gonzalez Now Claims Blackmail in Dead Staffer Affair Case

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) Rep. Tony Gonzalez, R-Texas, is facing renewed scrutiny after the husband of a former staffer with whom he allegedly had an affair broke his silence. Gonzalez is now claiming he is being blackmailed, though reporting suggests otherwise. 

The backlash intensified after Adrian Aviles, the widower of Gonzalez staffer Regina Santos-Aviles, confirmed the rumored affair for the first time in remarks to the San Antonio Express-News. 

“I said the truth would come to light when it’s time, and the time is now,” Aviles said. “Tony abused his power. He should have held himself to a higher standard as a congressional leader.” 

Aviles’s comments come months after his wife died on Sept. 13, 2025. According to reports, Santos-Aviles poured gasoline on herself and set herself on fire after struggling with depression stemming from the alleged affair. 

“I hope that Tony will stand up and be accountable for his actions,” Aviles added, breaking months of silence that followed Headline USA’s prior attempts to reach the family in 2025. 

The day before Aviles’ public remarks, the San Antonio Express-News reported on text messages between Santos-Aviles and a former colleague in which she allegedly acknowledged the affair with Gonzalez, who is married and has six children. 

Gonzalez has largely avoided questions about his relationship with the now-deceased staffer, calling the affair “completely untruthful.” 

On Thursday, Gonzalez claimed on X that he was being blackmailed and posted screenshots of a settlement email from Aviles’ attorney, Robert Barrera. 

The email shows Barrera offering to resolve a possible lawsuit through a non-disclosure agreement. It referenced a potential payment of $300,000. 

Barrera later said that figure reflected the damages his client initially sought had a lawsuit been filed. 

Despite Gonzalez’s claim of blackmail, Barrera has publicly acknowledged that he was researching potential damages under the Congressional Accountability Act. 

Meanwhile, Aviles told The Daily Mail that his wife had previously raised concerns about Gonzalez’s alleged advances. 

“He had made a pass at her and she’d mentioned, she’d said something about, you know, him being her boss and that that was inappropriate,” the widow said. 

Aviles said he attempted to save his marriage through counseling, but Santos-Aviles did not want to leave her job in Gonzalez’s office. 

“They were like, ‘Take a month off. Don’t worry about anything. We’ll take care of everything for you.’ The motto around there is protect Tony at all costs, and even at that all cost is lying,” he added. 

According to Aviles, Santos-Aviles was eventually sidelined by Gonzalez’s office in the months leading up to her death. 

Oakland Mayor, Who Voiced Support for ‘Defund the Police,’ Has Her Car Stolen

Luis Cornelio
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Oakland Mayor, Who Voiced Support for ‘Defund the Police,’ Has Her Car Stolen

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) An alleged thief stole Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee’s city-owned vehicle after breaking into her office just two days earlier, according to the California edition of the New York Post. The Oakland Police Department recovered the vehicle within hours, two days after somebody tampered with her office’s door. 

“The Oakland Police Department is investigating the theft of a city-owned vehicle. On February 17, 2026, OPD was notified that the vehicle was stolen from Oakland City Hall,” the OPD said through a spokesperson. “The vehicle was recovered within hours. OPD is following up on potential leads.” 

Lee took office in May 2025 after serving more than two decades in Congress. She previously expressed support for efforts to “restructure” and “overhaul” policing during the 2020 protests, language widely associated with the “defund the police” movement. 

In 2020, she told Politico she was “really proud” of the Minneapolis City Council’s pledge to defund the local police. 

In December 2020, she also said, “We have to restructure our funding priorities in terms of how we make our communities safe.” 

“We have seen video after video over the last few weeks of peaceful protestors being met with extreme violence from police,” Lee said during the 2020 protest in favor of George Floyd. “We can’t wait. It’s time to overhaul our policing system.”  

According to the New York Post, police already had an arrest warrant for the alleged suspect.  

The theft comes amid a broader problem for Oakland as the city reported 9,914 motor vehicle thefts in 2024, one of the highest rates in the country. 

In a statement, Lee claimed her administration takes crimes seriously:  

“As with criminal cases such as this, the Oakland Police Department is actively investigating, and we cannot comment further at this time. No one in Oakland should have to worry about their car being stolen, whether they’re a resident, a city worker, or the Mayor. Public safety is a priority across our entire city.” 

Trump Announces $10 Billion for Gaza at Board of Peace Meeting

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Trump Announces $10 Billion for Gaza at Board of Peace Meeting

(Sarah Roderick-Fitch, The Center Square)  The inaugural meeting of the Board of Peace met in Washington, D.C. at the Donald J. Trump Institute for Peace on Thursday morning, with the president pledging $10 billion to the Gaza reconstruction.

President Donald Trump opened and gaveled out the three-hour-long meeting, which included comments from the nearly 50 international leaders and representatives gathered at the historic event.

“Board of Peace is one of the most important and consequential things, I think, that I’ll be involved in,” the president told the attendees. Adding that it is the most “prestigious board” ever compiled.

“We worked together to ensure the brighter future for the people of Gaza, the Middle East and the entire world.”

In addition to the $10 billion committed on behalf of American taxpayers, the president announced the countries of Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, the United Arab Emirates, Morocco, Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Uzbekistan and Kuwait are committing over $7 billion “toward the relief package.” Trump added that several others are expected to contribute, including a fundraising effort led by Japan, and the UN Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance is raising $2 billion in support of reconstruction.

“The nations represented here today…are not just contributing money, some are also pledging personnel to help preserve the cease fire and secure a very enduring peace,” the president added.

Trump announced Albania, Kosovo and Kazakhstan have committed troops and police to stabilize Gaza, while Egypt and Jordan are also providing “substantial help” in the form of troops, training and “support for a very trustworthy Palestinian police force.”

It was announced during the meeting that 500 Palestinians have applied to join the police force.

However, the president did underscore the importance of Hamas completely disarming as part of the 20-point peace deal.

Secretary of State Marco Rubio underscored that a lot of work remains in the region, requiring the assistance of an international body.

“There’s a lot of work that remains. It will require the contribution of every nation state represented here today…We hope that this can serve as a model for other complex and difficult situations, so they can be solved in the same way. But right now, the focus is on this one. We have to get this right,” Rubio said during the meeting. “There is no plan B for Gaza. Plan B is going back to war. No one here wants that. Plan A, the only path forward. Path forward is one that rebuilds Gaza in a way of enduring and sustainable peace.”

While much of the meeting focused on the future of Gaza, Trump used a portion of his speech to send another strong warning to Iran as tensions rise amid continued talks in hopes of avoiding additional strikes on the Islamic Republic.

The president said that Iran cannot continue to “threaten the stability of the entire region,” insisting the Islamic Republic “must make a deal.”

“If that doesn’t happen…bad things will happen,” said Trump.

Leaders and representatives in attendance at the inaugural meeting were: Albania, Argentina, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bulgaria, Cambodia, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Egypt, El Salvador, EU, Finland, Germany, Greece, Hungary, India, Indonesia, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kosovo, Kuwait, Mexico, Mongolia, Morocco, Netherlands, Norway, Oman, Pakistan, Paraguay, Poland, Qatar, Republic of Korea, Romania, Saudi Arabia, Slovakia, Switzerland, Thailand, Turkey, United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.

The formation of the Board of Peace was announced after a peace plan was reached between Israel and Hamas last fall, following the Israel-Hamas war, which cost thousands of lives on both sides.

Whoopi Goldberg Caught in Epstein List, Suddenly Offers Context

Luis Cornelio
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Whoopi Goldberg Caught in Epstein List, Suddenly Offers Context

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) The hosts of The View are now offering explanations for why individuals may appear in the trove of Jeffrey Epstein files released by the Department of Justice — but only after one of their own became entangled in the documents. 

Co-host Whoopi Goldberg was referenced 21 times in the Epstein files, including one instance in which an individual asked Epstein whether he would offer to fly Goldberg on his private jet to a charity event in Monaco. 

The email was sent on May 8, 2013, roughly five years after Epstein pleaded guilty to procuring a child for prostitution. The Media Research Center first exposed this email and other mentions of Goldberg on Feb. 4. 

Epstein responded in a typo-laden reply: “no thnaks.” 

On Tuesday, Goldberg and her co-hosts rushed to downplay the mentions, insisting that being referenced in the documents does not imply wrongdoing.  

Tellingly, this defense comes after President Donald Trump initially argued against releasing the full set of files, citing concerns over privacy and the potential misuse of sensitive information. 

“Anybody can be on this list,” said co-host Joy Behar. 

“Anybody,” Goldberg added. “Well, this is my point. Because I’m telling you when I tell you people are trying to turn me into — I wasn’t his girlfriend. I wasn’t his friend.” 

“But Trump is on the list 38,000 times. Come on!” Behar interjected. 

“Well, I can’t speak to him, but I’m speaking about me because I’m getting dragged. People actually believe that I was with him. It’s like, honey, come on,” Goldberg continued. 

The comments stood in sharp contrast to the hosts’ vocal demands that the full Epstein files be released just months ago. 

“Bottom line is this — release the damn files and release them now. Release everything,” co-host Ana Navarro said in one show, as clipped by X page Western Lensman. 

A clip revealing the hypocrisy is available here 

Ex-Biden ‘Ministry of Truth’ Official Lands Powerful Spy Court Post

Luis Cornelio
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Ex-Biden ‘Ministry of Truth’ Official Lands Powerful Spy Court Post

(Luis Cornelio, Headline USA) One of the top officials who helped orchestrate the so-called Disinformation Governance Board during the Biden administration has been appointed to advise the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. 

The controversial official, Jennifer Daskal, was appointed Feb. 1 as a legal adviser by the presiding judges of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review. 

The position, first reported by The Washington Free Beacon, is formally titled amicus curiae and is also known as “friend of the court.” The highly influential role involves advising judges on legal issues related to foreign surveillance warrants in national security cases, according to the Free Beacon. 

Specifically, Daskal would perform “actions necessary and proper for the execution of the Board’s responsibilities.” 

According to the court’s website, members of the permanent amicus pool serve without fixed expiration dates and remain eligible to weigh in on surveillance cases.  

For instance, three individuals — Laura Donohue, Amy Jeffress and Marc Zwillinger — were appointed to that role in 2015 and remain active to this day. 

Daskal is no stranger to high-level appointments. In 2022, she served as acting principal deputy general counsel at the Biden-led Department of Homeland Security and drafted the charter for the controversial Disinformation Governance Board. 

The short-lived board was scrapped after widespread backlash over what critics described as a federal censorship apparatus designed to police so-called disinformation, a vague term frequently applied to speech that counters left-leaning political narratives. 

Senate Judiciary Committee Chairman Chuck Grassley, R-Iowa, warned that Daskal’s appointment risks further eroding public trust in the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court. 

“The American people need to have confidence in the people tasked to serve as amici before the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court,” Grassley said, pointing to legislation that would empower Congress to appoint amici curiae to the FISA-related courts. 

The bill, titled the FISA Accountability Act, would strip the power to appoint amici curiae from the presiding judges of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court and the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court of Review. 

Bush appointee U.S. District Judge Anthony Trenga and Obama appointee appellate Judge Stephen Higginson currently hold that authority. 

Sen. Eric Schmitt, R-Mo., doubled down on Grassley’s warning on X:

Taxpayer-Backed Teacher Unions Receive $390M in Dues

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Taxpayer-Backed Teacher Unions Receive $390M in Dues

(Esther Wickham, The Center Square)  National teacher unions continue to collect hundreds of millions of dollars annually in membership dues, according to new federal filings with the U.S. Department of Labor.

The National Education Association, which reported 2,846,104 members from September 2024 through August 2025, reported approximately $454 million in total receipts during the fiscal year, according to its LM-2 filing. Of that amount, about $390 million came from dues and agency fees. (According to the Department of Labor, LM-2 filings are annual financial reports from labor organizations with $250,000 or more in receipts.)

NEA President Becky Pringle received $514,755 in salary during the reporting period. Since becoming president in 2021, her salary has increased by more than $80,000, according to federal filings.

Other top officers also received six-figure compensation. Vice President Princess Moss received total compensation of $416,514, while Secretary-Treasurer Noel Candelaria received $417,186.

The NEA reported $529.5 million in revenue for the 2022–23 fiscal year, including $374.2 million from membership dues, according to Americans for Fair Treatment. The average full-time teacher pays between $200 and $220 annually for national NEA membership, typically deducted directly from paychecks.

A majority of public school districts do not reimburse union dues. They are paid by members via payroll deduction of taxpayer-funded salaries.

Union officials argue the spending supports advocacy for educators and students. In a recent statement emailed to The Center Square, Pringle said test scores “reflect the consequences of disinvestment in public education,” adding that schools need funding to pay teachers competitive wages, reduce class sizes and invest in updated materials.

But critics question whether unions calling for increased taxpayer funding are also expanding their own operations and executive pay.

“The labor unions are an absolute cancer on our education system,” Rusty Brown, director of special projects at the Freedom Foundation, which advocates against public-sector unions, told The Center Square. Brown argued that unions function like cartels and contribute to declining academic standards.

According to its 2025 LM-2 filing, the NEA reported $51,747,025 in disbursements for political activities and lobbying.

Since 2022, the NEA and the American Federation of Teachers have together contributed $43.5 million to political organizations, including The Trevor Project, according to a report by the nonprofit Defending Education.

At the state level, union dues can be far higher. For example, in California, individual teacher dues exceed $1,000 annually for state and national unions. Public education unions in California are estimated to collect more than $800 million per year, according to the California Policy Center.

President Trump Threatens War With Iran at His First ‘Board of Peace’ Meeting

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President Trump Threatens War With Iran at His First ‘Board of Peace’ Meeting

(Dave DeCamp, Antiwar.com) President Donald Trump on Thursday convened the first meeting of his so-called “Board of Peace,” a body he formed to oversee the Gaza ceasefire, which Israel continues to violate, and appeared to threaten that a US attack on Iran could come within 10 days.

In a speech at the meeting, Trump referenced his June 2025 attack on Iran, which targeted the country’s nuclear facilities. “Now, we may have to take it a step further — or we may not. Maybe we’re going to make a deal. You’re going to be finding out over the next, probably 10 days,” he said.

Trump also said that Iran “must make a deal. If that doesn’t happen… bad things will happen.”

The US president convened the “Board of Peace” while overseeing what The Wall Street Journal has described as the largest gathering of US airpower in the region since the 2003 invasion of Iraq. The US has sent a second aircraft carrier to the Middle East and deployed dozens of additional fighter jets there in recent days.

While Trump claims Iran has the opportunity to “make a deal” with the US, it’s unclear what sort of agreement he would accept, and his administration hasn’t made a coherent case for why it needs to attack the country.

In his remarks on Thursday, Trump said Iran cannot have a “nuclear weapon,” but for months, he insisted the US airstrikes “obliterated” Iran’s nuclear facilities, and there’s no sign Tehran is even capable of enriching uranium at the moment. According to The New York Times, Iran has suggested it’s willing to suspend nuclear enrichment for three to five years, and then enter a regional consortium to enrich civilian-grade uranium, an arrangement that would give Tehran no path to a nuclear weapon.

The US’s real goal with Iran is likely either regime change or removing Iran’s ability to strike Israel. Israeli officials have demanded that any deal must include restrictions on Iran’s missiles, a condition Tehran would never accept since its missiles are its only form of deterrence and way to launch counterattacks if it’s bombed by the US or Israel.

 

This article originally appeared at Antiwar.com. 

Rep. Ro Khanna To Force a Vote on Iran War Powers Resolution Next Week

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Rep. Ro Khanna To Force a Vote on Iran War Powers Resolution Next Week

(Dave DeCamp, Antiwar.com) Rep. Ro Khanna (D-CA) said on Wednesday that he will force a vote on a War Powers Resolution meant to prevent President Trump from attacking Iran without congressional authorization, as required by the Constitution.

The resolution was introduced by Rep. Thomas Massie (R-KY), Khanna, and several other Democrats back in June 2025 amid the 12-day US-Israeli war against Iran, but a ceasefire was reached before a vote was held. Massie was the original sponsor, and the legislation currently has 77 co-sponsors, all Democrats.

Americans can contact their House representative and urge them to support H.Con.Res.38 to prevent a disastrous war with Iran, which appears imminent amid the major US military buildup in the region.

“Trump officials say there’s a 90% chance of strikes on Iran. He can’t without Congress,” Khanna wrote on X. “[Massie] & I have a War Powers Resolution to debate & vote on war before putting US troops in harm’s way. I will make a motion to discharge to force a vote on it next week.”

The California congressman said that he supported diplomatic efforts with Iran but that if “Trump is preparing to bomb Iran soon & others call for troops on the ground, Congress must get on the record so Americans know where their representatives stand.”

“Like the votes before the Iraq war, this could be one of the most consequential votes in the history of Congress. Are we going to stop another endless dumb foreign war? Or will the neoconservatives mislead us once again?” he added.

Multiple media reports have said that a US attack on Iran could happen in the coming days or weeks, and all signs indicate it could trigger a much bigger conflict than the 12-Day War, and that Iran wouldn’t hold back in its response. Tens of thousands of US military personnel in the Middle East are in range of Iranian missiles.

“A war with Iran would be catastrophic. Iran is a complex society of 90 million people with significant air defenses and military capabilities,” Khanna said. “We also have 30-40k US troops in the region who could be at risk of retaliation. Congress must do its job and stop this march to war.”

This article originally appeared at Antiwar.com.  

 

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