WASHINGTON D.C., DC — It seems like an issue would have to be out-of-this-world for Democrats and Republicans to work together on it – ironically one particular issue may be.
For decades, grainy footage and pop culture have facilitated America’s fascination with the idea there could be something else out there. In recent years, video released by the U.S. military has shown pilots’ eye view of unidentified flying objects and crafts.
A 2022 Pentagon report shows there’s been at least 500 sightings and reports.
But is the government telling us everything they know and everything we should know about UFOs? That’s the question centered around a congressional hearing looking into Unidentified Flying Objects or Unidentified Aerial Phenomena as they’ve been recently dubbed.
Two lawmakers from Florida, U.S. Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-St. Petersburg) and U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Parkland) are among the group at the forefront of the push for more transparency from the Pentagon.
“Part of my job is to investigate, so I'm doing just that,” Congresswoman Luna said in an interview with 10 Tampa Bay Tuesday. Luna, a U.S. Air Force veteran, recalled a time when a pilot she was working with witnessed an “airspace incursion” but couldn’t detail what it was.
”In the event that this is a national security issue and that this is what we think it is, we as a nation need to know how to respond to this,” Luna said. “We have aviators coming forward saying that not only are they being outpaced by some of these UAPs, but also is this something that is nefarious?
"What can we do from a technological perspective? And, frankly, what can we do to prepare.”
Luna says she and her colleagues have been “stonewalled” while trying to get answers.
“Why is the military and the government not just being honest with us? Why are they overclassifying it? Why aren’t they being transparent,” Moskowitz questioned during a press conference last week.
The House Oversight Committee hearing kicking off at 10 a.m. EST Wednesday will include testimony from three former military officers, who claim they’ve had encounters with UAPs.
The calls for more transparency are growing louder from both sides of the aisle, whether to quell conspiracy theories or get on top of what could be a growing national security issue.
“This is something that has undoubtedly captured the public's attention in multiple administrations and it's just finally time the U.S. government answer questions about what they know,” Moskowitz added.
It’s not just bipartisan but bicameral too. An amendment to the must-pass defense spending bill sponsored by Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-New York) and others like Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Florida) would force the release of UFO records.