Who?
Sen. Tim Kaine (D-VA) — Member, Senate Armed Services
LISTEN: Laslo & Kaine
Ask a Pol asks:
Around this time last year, you and Senate Intelligence Committee Vice-chair Mark Warner (D-VA) had a classified briefing on the “drone swarms” that shut down Langley Air Force Base] in 2023. Learn anything new since that briefing?
Key Kaine:
“We don’t know any more,” Sen. Tim Kaine exclusively tells Ask a Pol UAP. “I’ve had briefings with the DOD [Department of Defense] guys that are working on the UAS remit and asking questions about Langley. I’ve not had a specific Langley briefing, but I’ve done briefings where it’s come up. No more info about causes or who they were.”
ICYMI — Kaine confirms what Gillibrand told Ask a Pol
2025 Development: “UAS” now means “UAP” in DC
In this year’s NDAA — or National Defense Authorization Act — were you able to address the UAP incursions at Langley with some of these new UAS provisions?
“Yes, yeah,” Kaine says. “Big picture, there’s a lot of UAS provisions. I would say [Senate Intel Chair Tom] Cotton and Gillibrand are probably the two that are most on that.”
Do you think that’s going to be a game-changer and give commanders the power they’ve asked for to shoot down these objects hovering over US military bases?
“Yeah,” Kaine says.
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Caught our ear:
“[Defense Secretary Pete] Hegseth made a move this summer that was really smart. He kind of reconstituted the stakeholder roundtable on UAS’s in a way that’s making it more effective, and we did have a briefing about that about 60 days ago,” Kaine tells Ask a Pol UAP. “And it was the first briefing we had where, like, there was one person in charge who, you know, generated a lot of confidence.”
TRANSCRIPT: Sen. Tim Kaine (12-18-2025)
SCENE: Ask a Pol‘s Matt Laslo waits in the wings as Sen. Tim Kaine says goodbye to a young staffer. Once Kaine sends him off, Laslo slides in for a Langley update.
This interview takes place right inside the Senate Carriage Entrance of the US Capitol. Partway through Ask a Pol’s interview, former Secretary of Defense Chuck Hagel and his wife walk past, so Kaine stops to greet them before they head off to the Senators Only dining room for lunch with Sen. Elissa Slotkin (D-MI).
Matt Laslo: “Hey, how are you?”
Sen. Tim Kaine: “Good, Matt.”
Laslo: “Around this time last year, you and [Senate Intelligence Committee Vice-chair Mark] Warner (D-VA) had a classified briefing on Langley [AFB] — anything new…?”
Kaine: “We don’t know anymore.”
December 2024: Classified Langley briefing…
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Laslo shakes head as a question.
Kaine: “We don’t know anymore.”
Laslo: “But no more briefings with them?”
Kaine: “I mean, I’ve had briefings where — I’ve had briefings with the DOD [Department of Defense] guys that are working on the UAS remit and asking questions about Langley.”
Laslo: “Yeah?”
Kaine: “I’ve not had a specific Langley briefing, but I’ve done briefings where it’s come up. No more info about causes or who they were.”
Laslo: “How — so is that just…?”
Kaine sees his staffer is listening to the conversation from 10 or so feet away.
Kaine: “Do you need something else?”
Staffer shakes head no.
Kaine: “Were you okay? Okay.”
Staffer walks off.
Laslo: “They shut down Langley for 17 days and still haven’t addressed it a couple years later?”
Kaine: “Well, they’ve — I think they now…”
Kaine sees former Defense Seretary Chuck Hagel and his wife…
Kaine: “Hey Chuck! Good to see you, man.”
Hagel: “Hey! Nice to see you. You remember my wife?”
Kaine: “Yeah…”
They chat for a little bit before Kaine turns back to Ask a Pol founder Matt Laslo.
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Laslo: “So in this year’s NDAA, were you able to address that with some of the UAS provisions?”
Kaine: “Yes, yeah. But big picture, there’s a lot of UAS provisions. I would say [Senate Intel Chair Tom] Cotton and Gillibrand are probably the two that are, like, most on that. I tend to be a little more on the ships and sub stuff, but yeah, there were definitely…”
Laslo: “Do you think that’s going to be a game-changer, though? Like give the commanders…”
Kaine: “Yeah, I think I — I’m still not 100%… [Defense Secretary Pete] Hegseth made a move this summer that was really smart. He kind of reconstituted the stakeholder roundtable on UAS’s in a way that’s making it more effective, and we did have a briefing about that about 60 days ago.”
Laslo: “Hmm.”
Kaine: “And it was the first briefing we had where, like, there was one person in charge who, you know, generated a lot of confidence.”
Laslo: “Interesting. Yeah? Interesting.”
A Senators Only elevator arrives for Kaine.
Kaine: “Okay. See you later.”
Laslo: “Happy holidays.”
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AI Disclosure:
Ask a Pol‘s playing around with as many new AI tools as we can, so this small, unfunded startup can compete in today’s new media landscape.
