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Richard Russell spent his final moments in a Bombardier Q400 before deliberately crashing it on Ketron Island.

In the aftermath of Eric Swalwell’s shocking implosion over allegations of sexual misconduct, there is a chance — finally! — for the entire California gubernatorial field to focus on issues that matter to voters.

Trump Says First Releases Of UFO Documents Will Begin 'Very, Very Soon'

Authored by Jill McLaughlin via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours),

President Donald Trump announced April 17 that he expects his administration to begin releasing documents “very soon” related to extraterrestrial life and unexplained phenomena.

President Donald Trump walks toward reporters before answering questions prior to boarding Air Force One at Joint Base Andrews, Md., on April 10, 2026. Win McNamee/Getty Images

“As you remember, I recently directed the Secretary of War … to begin releasing government files relating to UFOs and unexplained aerial phenomena,” Trump told an audience in Phoenix, Arizona. “I’m pleased to report today … that this process is well underway and we’ve found many very interesting documents, I must say. And, the first releases will begin very, very soon.”

Trump made the remarks at an event with Turning Point Action, an affiliate of Turning Point USA.

The president ordered government agencies to release information about UFOs and related phenomena in a Feb. 19 Truth Social post. Tremendous interest in the files prompted Trump to issue the directive to release files related to alien and extraterrestrial life, he said.

The U.S. government holds thousands of documents related to historical reports about the subjects of unidentified flying objects and alien phenomenon, including more than 12,600 reports from Project Blue Book, which took place from 1947 to 1969. The public can already access some of the public records, photos, and sounds at the National Archives.

The buzz over revealing more evidence comes days after Artemis II made its historic voyage around the moon, stirring the public’s interest in space discovery.

Trump’s announcement, however, fell flat with UFO investigator Donald Schmitt, who said he had “very little hope” the documents would prove anything more than what has already been released to the public.

“They’re just documents,” Schmitt told The Epoch Times. “They don’t prove anything. We need to stop dancing around the idea that we want to see the files or documents. … I want to hold a piece of the hardware. I want to see a tissue sample. Take me to where you’re preserving the bodies after all these years.”

“That’s what this should come down to,” Schmitt said. “Otherwise this is just song and dance.”

Schmitt, a seven-time best-selling author whose first book was made into the made-for-TV movie “Roswell,” serves as lead investigator for the International UFO Museum in Roswell, New Mexico. He has spent decades researching the alleged crash of a UFO about 75 miles north of the rural southeastern town in 1947.

At the peak of the independent investigations into the Roswell incident, Schmitt said they had 150 eyewitnesses for government officials to interview, but no one was interested in talking with them, he said.

“We have 30 deathbed confessions. They’re not interested,” Schmitt said about the government investigators.

The International UFO Museum in Roswell, New Mexico, tells the story about the 1947 UFO crash that eyewitnesses say happened 75 miles away from the southeastern city. Jill McLaughlin/The Epoch Times

He said he hoped he was wrong about the upcoming release of information, but it seemed to be generating a lot of confusion.

“I’m always cautious of people who speak as though they have any answers or they refer to themselves as experts, especially on this topic,” he added. “I can’t emphasize enough, there is no such thing as an expert on UFOs.

“The mystery continues.”

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth told reporters Feb. 23 he was already working on getting the documents in order.

Gen. John "Jay" Raymond (L), Commander of U.S. Space Command, and Chief Master Sgt. Roger Towberman (C) hold the Space Force Flag as President Donald Trump gestures to it during the presentation in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington on May 15, 2020. AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File

“We’ve got our people working on it right now,” Hegseth said. “We’re digging in. We’re going to be in full compliance to be able to provide that for the president.”

Hegseth didn’t have a time frame for when he would be able to provide the documents. He didn’t say whether he believed aliens existed, but Vice President JD Vance weighed in on his thoughts about the unknown beings in an interview with conservative political commentator Benny Johnson on March 27.

“When I came in, I was obsessed with the UFO files,” Vance said. “I have not been able to spend enough time on this to fully understand it. I’m going to get to the bottom of it.”

Vance elaborated on his beliefs about extraterrestrial beings.

“I don’t think they’re aliens,” Vance said. “I think they’re demons anyway, but that’s a long discussion.”

Tyler Durden Sat, 04/18/2026 - 17:30

Iran’s so-called “mosquito fleet” — thousands of small, fast-attack boats paired with drones and coastal missiles — is proving it can still rattle global oil markets.

The thought of being back on this stage had Deandre Ayton’s blood boiling. He quipped that he was ready to do backflips out of excitement because of what was ahead for him and the Lakers.  That’s how much Ayton is relishing the opportunity to be a part of the NBA playoffs again, with the Lakers...

If there is a baseball hell, the Mets have found it and are threatening to establish permanent residence.

A new survey of Gen Z job seekers shows the availability to access weight loss drugs like Ozempic and Wegovy included in their benefits package strongly impact their job decisions, and they'd give up PTO days, along with many other perks in exchange for weight-loss drug coverage.

After years of frustrating misdiagnoses, 23-year-old Phoebe Tesoriere of Wales desperately turned to ChatGPT for answers -- and the bot figured out her conditions when her doctors couldn't.

California is a beacon for smart people. Yet we seem to excel in producing policies that hurt ourselves. 

Iran's military has been able to maintain control of the Strait of Hormuz, with the nation reimposing restrictions on the critical waterway.

Senate Bill Wants Commercial Reactors On Federal Land

Senators Mike Lee (R-UT) and Dave McCormick (R-PA) introduced the Nuclear Energy Innovation and Deployment Act (NEIDA) on April 14th, presenting what could be one of the most significant regulatory shifts for U.S. nuclear power in decades. 

The legislation would expand the DOE’s authority to license and regulate commercial reactors and fuel-cycle facilities when sited on federal land or built for federal purposes, including electricity supplied to federal power marketing agencies. 

The United States should lead the nuclear energy renaissance, not watch it from the sidelines.

My Nuclear Energy Innovation and Deployment Act with @SenMcCormickPA will help power America’s future. https://t.co/X8mOPRlMIT

— Mike Lee (@SenMikeLee) April 14, 2026

It would also create a permanent Nuclear Energy Launch Pad program to streamline demonstration projects on DOE and National Lab sites, with a built-in path to commercial operations under DOE oversight rather than the traditional NRC bottleneck.

Under current rules, even projects on federal property like Idaho National Laboratory (INL) typically require full NRC licensing if they want to be used for commercial purposes. NEIDA flips that script. Commercial reactors and related fuel facilities on qualifying federal sites could operate under DOE authority, complete with Price-Anderson liability protections. 

The bill also repurposes surplus plutonium as reactor fuel through a milestone-driven program, turning a liability into domestic supply while federal power marketing administrations gain explicit authority to purchase and transmit nuclear-generated electricity.

The centerpiece is the Nuclear Energy Launch Pad, which would designate secure federal zones (primarily on DOE and National Lab land) for private companies to test and demonstrate advanced nuclear technologies. Private entities pay the bill, but gain infrastructure support and regulatory certainty. After demonstration, projects could transition seamlessly to commercial operation under DOE licensing. 

As we have covered in recent reporting on surging nuclear interest, this framework directly addresses the “valley of death” between pilot and full deployment that has stalled U.S. progress while China and Russia build out capacity at pace.

Take Oklo’s Aurora powerhouse already under construction at INL. The company received DOE approval for its Nuclear Safety Design Agreement (NSDA) in March 2026 under the existing Reactor Pilot Program. If NEIDA made that pathway permanent and explicit, Oklo could complete testing and iteration under DOE oversight, then secure a commercial operations license directly from the agency without restarting with the NRC. The shift would provide exactly the certainty developers have long sought.

The bill could also create a natural bridge to the Genesis Mission, DOE’s flagship AI and energy-dominance initiative. Genesis is already pushing co-location of data centers on federal land with advanced nuclear power to meet exploding AI-driven power demand. Under NEIDA, reactors licensed and operated by DOE on those same sites could enter straightforward commercial offtake agreements to supply Genesis-linked data centers. 

The Launch Pad’s streamlined DOE process, combined with existing experience, could compress timelines dramatically. Consider an AP1000 reactor announced for a federal site: from initial filing to full commercial license, the bill’s framework suggests a matter of months rather than the multi-year NRC odyssey that has become standard. 

If enacted, NEIDA does not overhaul the entire NRC system. It would simply carve out a fast lane on federal real estate. In an era of record electricity demand from AI and manufacturing, that lane may prove decisive.

Tyler Durden Sat, 04/18/2026 - 16:55

A series of recent attacks on key transport routes have slashed Moscow’s oil shipments by roughly 880,000 barrels a day, Ukraine's Armed Forces said Saturday.

The reality star is rumored to be fuming over her fading results.

The reality star is rumored to be fuming over her fading results.

It was vintage Kristaps Porzingis.  He was active. He was everywhere. He helped space the court for Steph Curry’s scoring flurries. He was in the trenches alongside Draymond Green on defense. A few days before the Warriors were eliminated Friday from the play-in tournament, Porzingis had 20 points (8-for-12 shooting from the field, 3-for-6 from...

A three-time NBA champion foresees a Knicks implosion after hearing “rumblings” of a fractured team. 

Virginia Tech’s spring game was delayed Saturday afternoon, after two daredevil parachuters flew over the stadium — with one of them crashing into the stadium's video board, moments before kick-off.

At least for one day, the Yankees spared themselves the drama. 

A Conservative influencer was allegedly attacked by a gay couple in West Hollywood after questioning them if they were fit to be parents.

KD and Lebron will face off in the fourth playoff series of their careers.