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A CONGRESSMAN has claimed the US has wreckage recovered from a UFO as the phenomena takes centre stage today in Washington.
Rep. Tim Burchett - a long term advocate for disclosure - told The Sun Online he has been informed by reliable sources that "material" has been recovered from the objects or craft that have been reported in skies over the US.
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The Tennessee Republican declined to elaborate further as he said the information had been passed to him in a "classified setting".
"I've been told by multiple sources we have recovered something from these [crafts or objects]," Mr Burchett told The Sun Online.
He was speaking just hours before the first UFO hearing in Washington in decades as the topic steps from the fringe into the mainstream.
UFO discussion in the US has shifted from conspiracy theories to a genuine national security concern after a string of servicemen and defence officials came forward regarding their strange encounters.
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And the most striking of which was the trio of leaked videos showing UFOs operating near US warships and being pursued by fighter planes, known as the Tic Tac, Gimbal and Go Fast.
Mr Burchett however warned he does not have faith in the upcoming Congressional hearing, believing that whatever the US knows will be continued to be covered up by institutions in Washington.
And he said full disclosure that revealed evidence of alien life visiting Earth could change the world - saying he believes it would help people put terrestrial differences to bed.
"It would do away with the 'bogeyman from overseas'," he told The Sun Online.
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His view is an echo of the 1987 speech by US President Ronald Reagan, who famously said: "I occasionally think how quickly our differences worldwide would vanish if we were facing an alien threat from outside this world.”
And for Mr Burchett the public "need to know" the truth about what is going on with UFOs.
"All we do is cover up, let's just be transparent - what is wrong with telling the world and saying 'We’ve got this, we are going to share it and we can figure out what it is together'?," he said.
“I don’t think a lot is going to come from the hearings. Its bringing in the people who created the problem to fix the problem."
Even if you believe in God, there must be something else out there - we can't just be it. Infinity is a long way
Rep. Tim Burchett
He blasted recent "bogus" Pentagon reports on UFOs as being like "swiss cheese" due to the amount of redactions.
Rep. Burchett said: "We need full disclosure. This is what we know and this what we don't know."
He added: "We can and should do better."
The issue also stretches beyond the US - with the Congressman adding he has heard Russia and China are also interested in the UFO topic, having had their own encounters.
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He explained he does not believe the objects are advanced technology from Moscow or Beijing - as some have suggested.
And he added there is still a lot of resistance amongst elected lawmakers who don't want to touch the issue with a "ten foot pole" for political reasons.
"I don't care if they abuse me, I think the American people need to know - I even put out a t-shirt on my website saying 'more people believe in UFOs than in Congress', and that's the truth."
However, Mr Burchett added he does believe the stigma around discussing UFOs is starting to break down.
And he called for a blanket amnesty for officials currently restricted by non-disclosure agreements from talking UFOs.
Rep. Burchett told The Sun Online the the game changing moment in the UFO debate was the US Navy videos.
And he has personally spoken to US pilots who have encountered the mysterious phenomena.
"The only reason we are talking about this right now is the leak US Navy videos and the pilots who saw them," he said.
"I've talked to other pilots as well [who have seen things] - and these people are some of the best in the world and very patriotic".
He added: "These are people in their 20s who are very confident in their abilities - a lot of them just laughed about it as they simply had no control.
"It's wild stuff, the [objects] turn on a dime, and accelerate at an incredible rate with no heat trail. Its miraculous."
What is going on with UFOs in the US?
UFOS have stepped from fringe conspiracy theories to a genuine national security debate in the US.
Pentagon officials took the unprecedented step to confirm a trio of remarkable videos which showed US encounters with UFOs.
The debate is still open as to what the phenomena caught on film were – but it made clear to everyone, something is in the skies.
Perhaps the most striking was a video known as the “Tic Tac” – which showed an unidentified object being pursued by fighter planes.
The US also confirmed the existence of the Advanced Aerospace Threat Identification Program (AATIP) – a Pentagon $12million programme set up to study UFOs before being disbanded in 2012.
Eventually, it was replaced by the UAP Task Force in June 2020 after a vote by the US Senate Intelligence Committee.
Defence chiefs have since confirmed a number of leaked UFO videos and photos which were submitted to the Task Force for investigation.
Why this sudden rush for transparency?
No one outside the secretive wings of the US government currently knows for sure.
And as a tacked on addendum to a 5,500 page Covid relief bill passed in December, the the Director of National Intelligence’s office was ordered to compile a report on UFOs within 180 days.
The UAP report dropped as expected on June 25, and while not giving much away - it did not rule anything out either as much of it remains classified.
The US appear to have acknowledged that UFOs - whatever they are - are real and are a potential threat to national security as they appear to be able to enter restricted airspace with total impunity.
Barack Obama and Bill Clinton have both discussed the topic and seemed to acknowledge something is going on - a massive turnaround from previous total denial the government had anything to do with UFOs.
Is it aliens? Officially the US position is simply, "we don't know yet" as further disclosure is expected in the coming months and years.
The Congressman believes there is only two explanations for the encounters - either it is of alien origin or it could be US black technology, but he is doubtful of latter due to the ways the objects appear to move.
He told The Sun Online: "According to our technology, a human couldn't survive inside that - he would be turned into a ketchup packet.
"There is no heat from the front end from friction or at the back from propulsion - which is obviously something we currently can't do and can't control."
And he doesn't believe what some experts have suggested that the revelations about alien life could damage society and the world's religions.
"In God's vast universe, if you think we are the best God can do you hold God in low esteem," he said.
"Even if you believe in God, there must be something else out there - we can't just be it. Infinity is a long way."
The Congressman said he has been interested in UFOs since the 1970s - and he said there have been reports of strange objects in the sky since the dawn of man, pointing to examples in the Bible and in Ancient Egypt.
Today at 9am EST (2pm BST) the House Intelligence Counterterrorism, Counterintelligence and Counterproliferation subcommittee will hold the landmark public hearing on UFOs.
Ronald S. Moultrie, under secretary of defence for intelligence and security, and Scott W. Bray, deputy director of naval intelligence, will both answer questions on the highly controversial topic.
US Congressman Andre Carson, the committee's chairman, said: "The American people expect and deserve their leaders in government and intelligence to seriously evaluate and respond to any potential national security risks - especially those which we do not fully understand."
And US Congressman Adam Schiff added: "There's still much to learn about UAP and the potential risks they may pose to our national security"
He described the issue as the "one of the greatest mysteries of our time" and said he hopes to "break the cycle excessive secrecy and speculation with truth and transparency".
