President Donald Trump said Thursday that he was directing agencies to release files pertaining to “alien and extraterrestrial life.”Trump wrote on Truth Social that “based on the tremendous interest shown,” he would be directing Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and officials at other relevant 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.”Trump’s announcement comes after former President Barack Obama said in a podcast interview that aliens were real, later clarifying that he meant “the odds are good there’s life out there.” Obama added in his clarification that he had seen “no evidence” of alien existence during his time in office. Obama was answering a series of questions during a “lightning round” of the podcast interview, when he was asked whether aliens were real.”They’re real,” Obama said, “but I haven’t seen them, and they’re not being kept in Area 51. There’s no underground facility unless there’s this enormous conspiracy and they hid it from the president of the United States.”The podcaster, Brian Tyler Cohen, then asked Obama what was the first question he had wanted answered when he took office.”Where are the aliens?” Obama responded.Trump, asked by a reporter about Obama’s remarks Thursday, said Obama had given classified information.“He’s not supposed to be doing that,” Trump added.Following a 2024 hearing, the Pentagon said it received hundreds of reports on UAPs and 21 that merited “further analysis” because of “anomalous characteristics and/or behaviors” — but found no evidence of extraterrestrial activity. Responding to Trump’s directive Thursday night, Hegseth posted a screenshot of Trump’s post with an alien emoji and a saluting emoji.Some lawmakers reacted to Trump’s announcement Thursday. Sen. John Fetterman, D-Pa., said in an interview on Fox News, “If he’s going to release all of the X-Files, I think that could be a bipartisan thing,” referring to the 1990s television show about FBI agents investigating — among other things — government conspiracies about aliens, which Fetterman said he “grew up watching.”Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., thanked Trump, writing: “Looks like we are about to have a ton of hearings on this :)!”