The Presidents and UFOs

January 12, 2015
Ufologist Holcomb, who has spent more than 50 years researching and compiling evidence of extraterrestrial activity, incorporates newly declassified Freedom of Information Act documents, copious eyewitness accounts, and the work of fellow ufologists into this detailed assessment. He frames his narrative according to presidential administrations, keeping an otherwise repetitive narrative moving. The basic story—a strange object is seen by civilians and/or the military, viewers are told to keep quiet as the story is debunked by the Air Force, additional details later leak out—is repeated ad infinitum and will be instantly recognizable to most readers. Holcomb’s inclusion of official documents lends his topic an elusive validation, adding weight to his story. There’s a cinematic undercurrent that runs through the book, most notably in the revelation that there was a CIA insider known as “the Caretaker” who briefed Presidents Nixon, Ford, and Reagan (and notably not Carter) on the topic of UFOs. According to the Caretaker, there were “four... races of extraterrestrials that visit Earth, one of which is considered hostile.” Frustratingly, Holcomb doesn’t reach any definitive conclusion on UFOs, but he raises many questions and offers plenty of evidence to keep fellow ufologists debating the topic for years to come.

March 1, 2015
For the more than six decades since the Roswell incident, in which an alleged alien spacecraft crashed in the New Mexico desert, fringe flying-saucer watchers have been accusing the U.S. government of concealing important information about UFOs. Billing this as an objective review of the evidence, veteran ufologist Holcombe uses newly declassified and Freedom of Information Act documents to reveal what every president from FDR to Obama supposedly knew about UFOs. Along with interviewing politically connected officials from past and present administrations, Holcombe also analyzes an extraordinary, 40-year-old UFO documentary produced by Robert Emenegger during the Nixon presidency that came close to proving that extraterrestrials are real. The author also discloses previously secret information from a CIA insider known as the Caretaker, who briefed Nixon, Ford, and Reagan on UFO topics. While skeptics may find some of Holcombe's evidence questionable or take issue with his pro-ET-visitation stance, hardcore UFO aficionados will doubtless tout his work as a new landmark in exposing the persistent governmental cover up of aliens in our midst.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)