MAGA falls in line and praises Trump for his announcement to release the extraterrestrial files

Critics, however, claimed the announcement was an attempt to distract from the Epstein files

President Donald Trump’s pledge to release government files on “alien and extraterrestrial life” quickly drew praise from his MAGA allies, who lauded the move as proof of his commitment to transparency.

However, some critics — such as Republican Rep. Thomas Massie — dismissed it as a ham-handed attempt to divert attention from the Epstein files, which have dominated the news cycle for months.

Trump’s surprise pronouncement was made on Thursday evening in the form of a 65-word Truth Social post.

“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,” the Republican president wrote.

Soon after, administration officials and Republican lawmakers expressed enthusiastic support for the decision.

Trump’s pledge to release files on extraterrestrial life won enthusiastic praise from his MAGA supporters, while critics called it was a ploy to divert attention from the Epstein files (AFP via Getty Images)

“OUT OF THIS WORLD NEWS from President Trump,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt wrote on X. Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth reposted Trump's message with emojis of an alien and a salute.

GOP Representatives Tim Burchett and Eric Burlison praised the 79‑year‑old president for committing to releasing information that has long fueled intense public curiosity and speculation.

“It’s time,” Burchett wrote on X, while Burlison added: “The public has a right to know what their government knows.”

“This is HUGE!” Gunther Eaglemen, a Trump-allied influencer with 1.6 million followers, wrote on social media. “Let the TRUTH be known!”

MAGA influencer Benny Johnson voiced excitement for the release of the what he called the “Alien files,” according to the Daily Beast.

However, a number of other online users, including at least one Republican lawmaker, expressed skepticism, claiming that the timing was suspicious.

“They’ve deployed the ultimate weapon of mass distraction,” Massie wrote in a post. “But the Epstein files aren’t going away… even for aliens.”

“No one in history has been able to distract ignorant people better than Trump is able to distract ignorant people,” wrote another user. “There’s a reason he wants you talking about aliens and not the Epstein...files.”

The Independent has contacted the White House for comment.

Trump said he would direct agencies and departments to begin releasing their files on 'alien and extraterrestrial life' (Truth Social)

Last night’s unprecedented announcement came days after former President Barack Obama claimed that alien life indeed exists.

“They're real, but I haven't seen them,” he said over the weekend during an appearance on the No Lie With Brian Tyler Cohen podcast. “There's no underground facility, unless there's this enormous conspiracy and they hid it from the president of the United States.”

The former president’s revelation sparked outrage from Trump.

“He took it out of classified information…He’s not supposed to be doing that," Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One on Thursday evening. "He made a big mistake."

It’s not clear what specific information is set to be released by the Trump administration — or on what timeline.

In recent years, various government officials have appeared to hint at the existence of extraterrestrial life. In 2023, military veterans testified before Congress, claiming that the U.S. government had recovered crashed alien vessels. And in 2020, the U.S. Navy released videos of unexplained objects, described as large Tic Tacs, floating through the air, according to The New York Times.

However, the U.S. government has a long history of fabricating evidence about extraterrestrial technology to distract from or cover up secret government weapons programs, according to The Wall Street Journal.

A majority of Americans, 56 percent, believe that aliens are definitely or probably real, according to a 2025 YouGov survey.