Louisiana Sen. Kennedy on unknown flying objects: “This has been going on for a long, long, long time.”
WASHINGTON (Gray DC) - Senator John Kennedy (R-La.) told reporters on Tuesday that unknown objects in American airspace is not a new occurrence. The senator’s remarks followed a classified briefing for all senators on unknown objects recently shot down over Alaska, Canada, and most recently Michigan.
“These objects have been flying over us for years,” Kennedy said. “This has been going on for a long, long, long time.”
When asked how long, Kennedy responded, “At least 2017.”
Most senators exited Tuesday’s briefing not revealing many, if any new details on the objects shot down over the weekend. Kennedy offered more context on objects previously in U.S. airspace.
He said, “We know some of the objects, others we think we probably missed, and we don’t know what most of them are.”
Several senators called on President Joe Biden to be more transparent with information regarding the most recent objects that he ordered to be shot down. Some called for President Biden to directly address the nation. While others, including Senator Kevin Cramer (R-N.D.), said “Perhaps he [President Biden] could, but I don’t know that that’s necessary just yet.” Cramer, however, expressed concern that without releasing more facts that people could create storylines that are scarier than reality.
Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) said of the classified briefing, “They made it clear that there is no harm to physical harm to Americans on the ground. No one has to worry about that.”
Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) echoed Schumer’s message. “I am not in any way afraid that we are under a threat of attack or physical harm to our homeland,” Blumenthal said.
Also on Tuesday, military leaders confirmed that the first missile fired at the object over Michigan on Sunday missed the object. A second missile was then fired. The miss is now raising questions about the safety of shooting the objects down.
Gen. Mark Milley, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said, “The missile landed harmlessly in the water of Lake Huron. We certainly tracked it all the way down and we made sure that the airspace was clear of any commercial, civilian or recreational traffic.”
Officials say they’re still working to recover the three objects shot down to learn more about what they are, and where they came from. They are also saying the more recent objects were different than the alleged Chinese spy balloon that traveled coast-to-coast before being shot down over the Atlantic Ocean.
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