
Who?
Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT) — Ranking Democrat, House Intelligence Committee
LISTEN: Laslo & Himes
Ask a Pol asks:
Have you heard about Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY) hoping to bring AARO — aka All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office — in for a public hearing?
Key Himes:
“Senators need to get briefed and then move on,” Rep. Jim Himes exclusively tells Ask a Pol. “Just way too much energy, and there is no there there. So, before senators start talking about it, they need to get briefed.”
NEWS:
“So I got an extensive briefing three weeks — or four weeks ago by [AARO],” Himes told us. “And they looked at every single compartmented program — and yeah, there was a program here or there that was set up in the event that we found something, but there’s just nothing there.”
Caught our ear:
“And I mean it just pains me to say, because there’s thousands of people out there who wake up in the morning desperate for there to be evidence of alien life, but there’s none,” Himes says. “And they [AARO] looked at every single compartmented program — and yeah there was a program here or there that was set up in the event that we found something, but there’s just nothing there.”
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Some people, like Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD) — who’s Intel and Armed Services, same with Gillibrand — they both aren’t convinced that Congress knows every SAP or Special Access Program.
“Well they need to get briefed by AARO,” Himes contends. “AARO will take them through every single compartmented program.”
So you’re convinced that AARO has full access to everything in the Pentagon?
ICYMI — Ask a Pol’s exclusive w/ Gillibrand
“Yes,” Himes says.
But also in Department of Energy, etc?
“Yes, yes.”
Yeah?
“Yes.”
Interesting.
“Now, are there two or three or four or five phenomenon that we don’t have the science around that we don’t — or some sighting or whatever — no, it’s not perfection,” Himes tells Ask a Pol. “But, you know, again, I wish we had aliens, but we don’t.”
Below find a rough transcript of Ask a Pol’s exclusive interview with Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT), slightly edited for clarity.
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(rough*) TRANSCRIPT: Rep. Jim Himes
*debate night, so rushed. Please triple check before quoting this transcript. Apologies!
SCENE: Ask a Pol’s Matt Laslo runs into a mesmerized Rep. Jim Himes in a tunnel connecting the US Capitol to the House Office Buildings across the street. New art work from a high school student in every congressional district was just hung in the space. When Laslo initially approaches Himes, the congressman is studying some of the new art.
Matt Laslo: “What’s your favorite one so far, sir?”
Jim Himes: “Well of course it’s the one from the 4th District of Connecticut.”
ML: “You’re paid to say that.”
Both laugh.
JH: “I kinda am, aren’t I? I kinda am. No, actually I’m seeing them for the first time.”
ML: “Well, they’ve gotten a lot better over the years.”
JH: “Yeah, yeah, yeah. You know it’s interesting to me, I’ll tell you what I’m observing is that it’s interesting how unpolitical they are, right? You know I figured there’d be a little more politics than usual, but I don’t see politics, you know?”
ML: “They weed that out. Remember during Black Lives Matter how there was a protest…?”
JH: “…I was just thinking about the painting of like a police officer with a face of a pig. That was ugly.”
ML: “You, so how — NDAA [National Defense Authorization Act] this year doesn’t seem like there’s much tension, or are we gonna see that?”
JH: “Well, you know, the sad thing is we’ve got three [appropriations] bills this week and because they have — every one of those bills, they’re culture war fever dreams, we’re just going to vote no. Right?”
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ML: “Yeah?”
JH: “So I mean it’s almost — it’s too bad, right? (inaudible)…”
ML: “So I guess the NDAA then they did put all that social policy in?”
JH: “Yeah you had a lot of Democrats who were yesses and then after the amendment process there wasn’t a single Democrat who was a yes.”
ML: “Cause, you know, I’m still fishing around to find out what happened to [Sen. Chuck] Shumer’s UAP amendment last year in the NDAA. And I haven’t found out…”
JH: “So I got an extensive brief three weeks — or four weeks ago — by whatever the hell. What’s the unit that, you know…?”
ML: “AARO?”
JH: “AARO?”
ML: “AARO.”
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