BRAVE MAG

Former President Barack Obama speaks at the Obama Foundation Democracy Forum, Dec. 5, 2024, in Chicago. Credit - Erin Hooley—Associated Press

Former PresidentBarack Obamasaid in an interview published Saturday that aliens are "real," but added that he hadn't seen them.

Asked by progressive podcaster Brian Tyler Cohen about the existence of extraterrestrial life, the former presidentresponded: "They're real."

"But I haven't seen them. They're not being kept atArea 51. There's no underground facility—unless there's this enormous conspiracy and they hid it from the President of the United States."

The interviewer did not ask a follow-up question on the topic.

The brevity of Obama's comment sparked a frenzy of speculation online, prompting the former president to issue a clarification on Instagram 24 hours later.

"I was trying to stick with the spirit of the speed round, but since it's gotten attention let me clarify," he wrote."

"Statistically, the universe is so vast that the odds are good there's life out there. But the distances between solar systems are so great that the chances we've been visited by aliens is low, and I saw no evidence during my presidency that extraterrestrials have made contact with us. Really!"

Read more:If They Find Life in Space, Scientists Are Worried About Breaking the News. Here's Why

The former president also spoke out about the recent deployment of thousands of immigration agents to Minnesota, condemning what he described as "rogue behavior" of the federal government during the months-long enforcement surge.

Obama compared the actions of the Trump Administration in Minnesota to behavior that "we've seen in authoritarian countries and we've seen in dictatorships, but we have not seen in America."

"It is important for us to recognize the unprecedented nature of what ICE was doing in Minneapolis, St. Paul, the way that federal agents, ICE agents were being deployed, without any clear guidelines, training, pulling people out of their homes, using five-year-olds to try to bait their parents," he said, referring to the case of5-Year-Old Liam Conejo Ramos.

"So the rogue behavior of agents of the federal government is deeply concerning and dangerous, but we should take a moment to appreciate the extraordinary outpouring of organizing, community building, decency, neighbors buying groceries for folks, accompanying children to school, teachers who were standing up for their kids, not just randomly, but in a systematic, organized way, citizens saying, "this is not the America we believe in,'" he said.

Obama, whom Trump succeeded in 2017, had previously spoken out against the federal immigration operations in Minneapolis following the killings of Alex Pretti and Renee Good by federal agents.

In a statement with his wife Michelleposted on Xafter Pretti's death, Obama claimed that Trump and officials in his Administration "seem eager to escalate the situation" instead of "trying to impose some semblance of discipline and accountability over the agents they've deployed."

"This has to stop," Obama said. "I would hope that after this most recent tragedy, Administration officials will reconsider their approach."

The Trump Administration said Thursday it is winding down its massive immigration enforcement operation in Minnesota following months of unrest over excessive use of force by immigration officers in the state, including the shooting deaths of Pretti and Good.

"I have proposed and President Trump has concurred that this surge operation conclude," border czar Tom Homan told reporters in a press conference in Minneapolis on Thursday.

President Donald Trump sent Homan, his top immigration advisor, to Minnesotalate last monthto address large-scale protests over excessive use of force by immigration officers in the state. Homan took over leadership of "Operation Metro Surge" from Border Patrol commanderGregory Bovinoand quickly set up meetings with local and state leaders, including sheriffs, police chiefs, Governor Tim Walz, MinneapolisMayor Jacob Frey, and Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison.

Obama also responded indirectly to the recent controversy over a video posted by President Donald Trump that depicted him and First Lady Michelle Obama as apes.

When asked about it, Obama commented on how there is a "sort of clown show that's happening in social media and on television."

"What is true is there doesn't seem to be any shame about this among people who used to feel like you had to have some sense of decorum and a sense of propriety and respect for the office. So that's been lost," he added.

Trump has refused to apologize for posting the video, saying he instructed a staffer to share it but that he had not seen the offending part.

"I didn't see the whole thing," Trump said. "I looked at the first part, and it was really about voter fraud in the machines, how crooked it is, how disgusting it is. Then I gave it to the people. Generally, they look at the whole thing. But I guess somebody didn't."

TIME has approached the White House for comment.

This story was updated to include President Obama's clarification on his commentsabout extraterrestrial life.

Contact usatletters@time.com.

Richard Tillman, 44, pleaded guilty in federal court on Monday, Feb. 9, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of California. He was initially charged in July 2025 and indicted by a grand jury on one count of malicious destruction of government property in August 2025.

Prosecutors said Richard Tillman intentionally crashed his vehicle into the Almaden Valley Station Post Office and then lit the car on fire on July 20, 2025. The Almaden Valley Station Post Office is located in San Jose, California.

Navy quarterback Roger Staubach wins the Heisman Memorial Trophy in 1963. Staubach did a tour of duty in Vietnam before joining the Dallas Cowboys in 1969.

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Ted Williams, Joe Louis, Rocky Bleier, Pat Tillman and other notable athletes who served

Local fire and police departments responded to reports of a vehicle on fire in the post office's lobby shortly after 3 a.m. PT, the postal inspection service previously told USA TODAY. When officers arrived at the scene, the San Jose Police Department said they "discovered a vehicle had been driven into the post office and caught fire, causing the entire building to catch on fire."

Following the incident, thepostal inspection servicesaid the Almaden Valley Station Post Office was temporarily closed after "sustaining significant building damages by a private vehicle driving into the facility." Prosecutors noted that the fire rendered the building's lobby unusable, and it has not been available to the public since then.

Prosecutors said Richard Tillman remains in federal custody and his sentencing hearing is scheduled for April 27. He faces a minimum sentence of five years in prison and a maximum sentence of 20 years, along with a $250,000 fine.

Prosecutors: Richard Tillman wanted to 'make a point' to US government

In pleading guilty, Richard Tillman admitted that he intentionally set the fire to "make a point to the United States government," according to prosecutors.

Prosecutors said Richard Tillman had loaded his vehicle with fire logs before backing the car through the post office's front door. He then got out of the vehicle, doused it with lighter fluid, and threw a lit match into the car.

"The fire quickly spread from the vehicle to the Post Office, completely destroying its lobby," prosecutors said.

About 50 personnel responded to the scene, and the fire was extinguished with no injuries, according to theSan Jose Fire Department.

'Goes everywhere Americans have gone':Whether by train, plane or dog sled, the US Postal Service has kept America connected

Who is Pat Tillman?

Pat Tillman played for theArizona Cardinals, but walked away from a new contract offer to join the U.S. Army Rangers in the wake of the 9/11 terror attacks. Another brother, Kevin, joined him.

Pat Tillman, who was born in the San Jose area, was killed by friendly fire in 2004 while serving in Afghanistan. An annual race, Pat's Run, is held each spring in Tempe, Arizona, to honor him and raise funds for the Pat Tillman Foundation.

Contributing: N'dea Yancey-Bragg, USA TODAY; Chris Coppola, Arizona Republic

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Pat Tillman's brother pleads guilty to setting US Post Office on fire

A Chicago teenager whose father was detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement last year as she was sick with a rare form of cancer has died.

Ofelia Torres died on Friday at the age of 16 from Stage 4 alveolar rhabdomyosarcoma, a rare and aggressive cancer that affects the soft tissue. She was diagnosed with cancer in December 2024.

Her father, Ruben Torres Maldonado, was arrested on Oct. 18, 2025, while she was home from the hospital spending time with her family. Ofelia posted avideoto Instagram following his arrest calling for his release and raising awareness about other families in similar positions.

Torres Maldonado was released from ICE detention about two weeks later on a $2,000 bond after a judge took his daughter's treatment into consideration during a hearing,NBC Chicagopreviously reported.

In the video, the teenager said her father was a hardworking immigrant who watched her brother while she stayed at the hospital for treatment.

"My dad, like many others, is a hardworking person who wakes up early in the morning and goes to work without complaining, thinking about his family," Ofelia says in the video. "I find it so unfair that hardworking immigrant families are being targeted just because they were not born here."

The video featured pictures of Torres Maldonado and his family, as well as of Ofelia at the hospital.

The Department of Homeland Security, which oversees ICE, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

In aprevious statement regarding the arrest of Ruben Torres Maldonado, the Department of Homeland Security wrote: "He's been charged multiple times with driving without insurance, driving without a valid license, and speeding. During his arrest he did not comply with instructions from the officers and attempted to flee in his vehicle and backed into a government vehicle."

Shortly before Ofelia's death, a Chicago judge ruled that her father was entitled to a cancellation of removal because his deportation would impact his U.S. citizen children negatively, according to a representative for the family. This ruling is expected to provide a pathway for Torres Maldonado to obtain permanent residence in the U.S. and citizenship, per the spokesperson.

Ofelia, who was a junior at Chicago's Lake View High School, was present for the hearing via Zoom three days before her death, according to the spokesperson.

"Ofelia was heroic and brave in the face of ICE's detention and threatened deportation of her father," said Kalman Resnick, Torres Maldonado's lawyer. "We mourn Ofelia's passing, and we hope that she will serve as a model for us all for how to be courageous and to fight for what's right to our last breaths."