Written Testimony of Luis Elizondo: Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena: Exposing the Truth

The Written Testimony of Luis Elizondo: Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena: Exposing the Truth is a written statement submitted by Luis Elizondo to the United States House Committee on Oversight and Accountability on 2024-11-13. The document is associated with the Written Testimony of Luis Elizondo to the House Committee on Oversight and Accountability (2024-11-13). The hearing was chaired by Nancy Mace and Glenn Grothman, with Gerald Connolly and Robert Garcia serving as Ranking Members.¹⁸ The testimony was submitted to joint proceedings of the House Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Information Technology, and Government Innovation and the House Subcommittee on National Security, the Border, and Foreign Affairs. What were formerly called Unidentified Flying Objects (UFOs) are now referred to as Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena (UAP).¹

Elizondo opens the testimony with a series of first-hand assertions grounded in his government service. He states that UAP are real,² that advanced technologies not attributable to the United States or any other government are monitoring sensitive military installations globally,³ and that the US and some of its adversaries are in possession of UAP technologies.⁴ He further characterises the situation as a multi-decade, secretive arms race funded by misallocated taxpayer dollars and concealed from elected representatives and oversight bodies.⁵ Elizondo states that in his last government position he managed a Special Access Programme (SAP) on behalf of The White House and the National Security Council,⁶ and draws a comparison to the intelligence failures surrounding the September 11 attacks, which he identifies as the most apparent consequence of excessive secrecy and information stove-piping.⁷

The testimony describes a pattern of institutional conduct that Elizondo characterises as suppression. He states that over the preceding decade and a half, certain UAP programmes operated without oversight from United States Congress, without responsiveness from the executive branch, and without informing the public.⁸ Much of his own government work on the UAP subject, he notes, remains classified.⁹ Elizondo and many of his former colleagues are described as victims of a culture of suppression and intimidation maintained by a small cadre within the US government, including unwarranted criminal investigations, harassment, and efforts to destroy their credibility.¹⁰ He states that Elizondo and colleagues provided classified testimony to both the United States Department of Defense (DoD) and the Intelligence Community Inspector General,¹² and that many who did so were subsequently subjected to threats against their careers, security clearances, and lives.¹³

Elizondo also identifies what he describes as a specific structural irregularity in the handling of public-facing UAP enquiries. He states that the Pentagon Public Affairs Office employs a professional psychological operations officer as the sole point of contact for UAP-related enquiries from citizens and the media.¹¹ He further asserts that The White House, the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), the Pentagon, the United States Department of Energy, and other bodies all play roles in the UAP issue, but that no single authority is in charge, which he argues leads to unchecked power and corruption.¹⁴

The testimony concludes with a set of recommendations directed at Congress and the executive branch. Elizondo calls for Congress and the President to establish a single point of contact responsible for a whole-of-government approach to the UAP issue,¹⁵ and for a national UAP strategy incorporating academic, scientific, private-sector, and international partners to promote transparency and restore public trust.¹⁶ He additionally recommends that Congress create a protected environment for whistleblowers to come forward without fear of retaliation, and that it wield subpoena power against unco-operative witnesses while preventing further government funding for UAP efforts hidden from congressional oversight.¹⁷