Eric Burlison’s a freshman. The Missourian’s respectfully played the part, especially when it comes to UAPs (or UFOs).
Burlison’s done playing though. For the 47-year-old software engineer-turned-politician that means establishing order in the chaos of mysteriously multi-layered government secrets.
Order, to this Republican—who’s new to a capital city powered by unseen anarchical fiefdoms—starts with a map. The UAP Caucus has been map-less of late. Burlison’s about to change that.
“Because I'm a freshman, I kind of let some people lead on it,” Burlison exclusively bemoans to Ask a Pol. “But what I’m gonna try to do is present—or at least try to provide help to—to the group of us, at least some kind of cohesive plan for what we, how we're going to go about getting all the answers.”
So he hopes. Burlison’s convinced someone on earth—whether the Pentagon, military contractors, a foreign nation, aliens or American Airlines—has mastered propulsion, as he personally conveyed to us at Ask a Pol upon leaving a classified UAP briefing in one of the US Capitols underground SCIFs (or Sensitive Compartmented Information Facilities) last month.
“The comment that I said to you … about propulsion was not anything that I learned or gathered from that room or was discussed,” Burlison tells Ask a Pol.
That said, Burlison’s demanding answers on propulsion.
“It was just my perception of what I'm seeing, because I believe that these videos—I don't doubt their validity. I think that these pilots are truly indeed seeing these things, they're videoing them and they're following them, right? And you can't deny that,” Burlison continues. “And so: What you have to come to the conclusion of is somebody is using some form of advanced propulsion, whether it's aliens from another planet or it's us, somebody's using something—some kind of new technology—and I want to know what it is.”
Again, Burlison hasn’t been convinced by what he’s heard from the federal government. If anything, all these so-called “state secrets” have only emboldened this duly elected Missouri congressman.
“We're flying very blind,” Burlison says. “There’s very little information.”
That’s why he and a bipartisan group of other Oversight Committee members are now demanding access to whistleblower David Grusch’s original IG report.
“This time around, there's no reason why they cannot give us access to the Grusch report,” Burlison tells Ask a Pol. “So I want to be able to read the Grusch report directly.
OTHER SIZZLIN HOT TOPICS COVERED:
Thoughts on Sean Kirkpatrick stepping down from AARO?
“When did that happen?” Burlison tells Ask a Pol. “Oh, wow.”
Was Rep. Tim Burchett pissed after October’s SCIF briefing?
“He was...”
UPAs
When I’m on no sleep and seem to call UAPs my favorite brews, IPAs
I’m judging you…
Know what’s up with UPAs in NDAA (Nat’l Defense Authorization Act)?
“I don't know but I need to find out what they are,” Burlison tells Ask a Pol. “Because if they don't stay on I want to fight for them to be in there.”
Matt Laslo’s a veteran congressional correspondent, new media prof. and founder of Ask a Pol — your conduit to Congress.
Ask a Pol is a new, people-powered press corps, asking your lawmakers your questions at your US Capitol. Follow us on the socials @Ask_a_Pol (or @askpols on Insta).
Below find a rough transcript of Ask a Pol’s interview with Rep. Eric Burlison, slightly edited for clarity.
Matt Laslo: “Hey, how you doing sir?”
Eric Burlison: “Good. House is voting, so I may have to come back.”
Burlison is looking at his phone checking how much time is left on the first vote in the House’s last vote series.
EB: “Sorry, I don't want to miss a vote.”
ML: “Oh, I know. I tell my interns: ‘If you ever let a lawmaker miss a vote, you're never going to talk to that lawmaker again…’”
EB: “There’s still 100 votes left, so…”
It seems roughly a quarter of the 435 member chamber hadn’t cast their votes yet so he stops for our exclusive.
ML: “We can get you out of the sun if you want.”
EB: “Oh, sure, whatever.”
ML: “I was curious, what are your thoughts on the head of AARO stepping down?”
EB: “That just—when did that happen?”
ML: “A couple of days ago, I think.”
EB: “Oh, wow.”
ML: “I know, right?”
EB: “I'm new to this, that was—I’m surprised I didn't know that.”
ML: “Yeah, I just learned it yesterday, I guess, but—because I was sick a couple of days ago—but yeah, he was only there 18 months and kinda said, I accomplished what I set out to. What do you make of that?”
Laslo laughs.
EB: “I think that—if he accomplished what he set out to then his goals were too low. His expectations were way, of what he needed to accomplish, was not what I would expect, so…”
ML: “Yeah. Because you all still have complaints about the agency, especially that whistleblowers don't really trust AARO yet?”
EB: “Yeah. And so I want to. I think that we need to—I'm all for bringing AARO into a SCIF. I'm all for—I want to go back in the SCIF with the AIG and read and have. This time around, there's no reason why they cannot give us access to the Grusch report. So I want to be able to read the Grusch report directly.”
ML: “So is that your main request to them after the last one [SCIF briefing]?”
EB: “And then once we have read it, then it's like, now I can form the right questions.”
ML: “Yeah.”
EB: “Okay because I'll be able to say, ‘Okay, Grusch says this agency—this is what he heard from them. Did you follow up on that?’”
ML: “Yeah.”
EB: “Those are the kind of direct questions that we need to be able to ask.”
ML: “Because right now, y’all, you're kind of flying blind?”
EB: “We're flying very blind, because we're not getting—we don't have. There’s very little information.”
ML: “Yeah.”
EB: “And, I would say, for example…”
ML: “Yeah. I didn’t mean to get you in trouble!”
Moved the above Laslo line a smidge in transcript, just so we don’t break up the congressman’s full thought.
EB: “The comment that I said to you whenever I came out of that room about propulsion was not anything that I learned or gathered from that room or was discussed. It was just my perception of what I'm seeing, because I believe that these videos—I don't doubt their validity. I think that these pilots are truly indeed seeing these things, they're videoing them and they're following them, right? And you can't deny that. But, I just, and so: What you have to come to the conclusion of is somebody is using some form of advanced propulsion, whether it's aliens from another planet or it's us, somebody's using something—some kind of new technology—and I want to know what it is.”
ML: “And Grusch, his public testimony, he got near that? Or does he get near that but you have more questions on that question? Specifically on that topic that might be able to be answered in your reading him?”
EB: “Yes. I hope so. I hope so.”
ML: “Do you—how do you guys do this? Apply that pressure? Like, are you guys applying it to the IG’s office? To DOD? It feels like this alphabet soup where it’s easy to lose…”
EB: “No. So I will say this, we need to really, like, hone in a plan. I've kind of stepped—because I'm a freshman, I kind of let some people lead on it. But what I’m gonna try to do is present—or at least try to provide help to—to the group of us, at least some kind of cohesive plan for what we, how we're going to go about getting all the answers.”
ML: “And you guys don't have word on, I think, next Thursday? You guys are going in the SCIF again? The 16th?”
EB: “I think so.”
ML: “But you guys aren't 100% sure on what that's gonna be?”
EB: “That meeting is where we're supposedly going to read the Grusch report.”
ML: “Have you had that confirmed, that you'll be able to read the Grusch report?”
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