Who?
Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT) — Ranking Member, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI)
LISTEN: Laslo & Himes
Ask a Pol asks:
Does the name ‘David Grusch’ ring a bell to you?
Key Himes:
“Yeah, yeah,” Rep. Jim Himes exclusively tells Ask a Pol.
What do you make of one of your colleagues — Eric Burlison — hiring him on staff?
“Oh, I didn’t know that was happening,” Himes says.*
*Ask a Pol: Where the Intel Committees get their UAP news.
HIMES v. GRUSCH:
“I don’t have particular thoughts on Grusch,” Himes says. “I took very seriously some of the allegations he had and AARO (All-domain Anomaly Resolution Office) and others investigated, and I don't see any evidence that there was any sweeping of things under the carpet. I asked specific questions about his specific testimony, and a lot of what he had was, first of all, hearsay, if you will. It wasn’t his personal experience. And secondly, a lot of this is misinterpretation of real things.”
Air Force “programs that contemplate the possibility that there could be anomalous materials”
“For example, the Air Force has programs and others have programs that contemplate the possibility that there could be anomalous materials or whatever,” Himes tells us. “To date, I have seen no evidence that any of these programs actually have any evidence whatsoever of any UAP, unusual materials, unusual life forms, etc.”
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Caught our ear:
“I have a question for you,” Himes says when he sees Laslo.
“What is it?”
“Can you think of a better rock anthem than the Cranberries’ Zombie?” the HPSCI Ranking Member asks Ask a Pol. “Seriously, it’s like stuck in my head right now.”
“I’ve got Taylor Swift stuck in my head, because NPR played it,” Laslo replies. “I swear, NPR can really throw off your day.”*
*Himes won this round of music roulette, but we’re already plotting revenge…
Ask a Pol Army strikes fear:
Honorable Mention I
“It's been a couple months since I thought about this, and your audience hangs on every word, so I've got to be pretty careful about this,” Himes says.
Honorable Mention II
I think people are gonna be surprised that you know Grusch’s name and that you've looked into it.
“No, he was pretty high profile,” Himes tells us. “And you know, though I'm not always happy about it, the UAP folks are, as the young ones say, in my DMs.”
Below find a rough transcript of Ask a Pol’s exclusive interview with Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT), slightly edited for clarity.
TRANSCRIPT: Rep. Jim Himes
SCENE: After voting on the House floor, Rep. Jim Himes exits the Capitol and holds an impromptu press conference, of sorts, with a large gaggle of reporters chasing reaction to The Atlantic v. Signal saga.
Once the press corps is done with Himes, the HPSCI Ranking Member starts heading to his office across the street while chatting with Laslo — and all of you in the Ask a Pol Army!*
*seriously, wait for it at the end — you all are on his radar (so try not to curse him out too much on social media, cause Ask a Pol has a decent chance of scoring a Live Listening w/ a Lawmaker Discord session with Himes…
Matt Laslo: “Hey, how are you?”
Jim Himes: “Hey.”
ML: “I was curious…”
JH: “I have a question for you.”
ML: “What is it?”
JH: “Can you think of a better rock anthem than the Cranberries’ Zombie?”
Laslo laughs.
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JH: “Seriously, it’s like stuck in my head right now.”
ML: “I’ve got Taylor Swift stuck in my head, because NPR played it this am.”
JH: “Which one?”
ML: “Some T. Swift song.”
JH: “Oh, a T. Swift song.”
Himes laughs.
JH: “I’m sorry, what’s your question?”
ML: “I swear, NPR can really throw off your day.”*
JH: “You listen to NPR?”
ML: “Yeah!”
JH: “Okay.”
ML: “I have NPR’s only bureau in DC — regional bureau.”*
*I don’t want taxpayer dollars — or corporate commercials — I want YOU! If we fail, it’s cause you found a better UAP outlet.
Que sera sera. — Prof. Laslo
ML: “Does the name ‘David Grusch’ ring a bell to you?”
JH: “Yeah, yeah.”
ML: “What do you make of one of your colleagues — Eric Burlison — hiring him on staff?”
JH: “Oh, I didn’t know that was happening.”
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ML: “Yeah. I guess he didn’t have his clearance, or lost it, and they're hoping that he gets his clearance restored and that they could get him in a SCIF with the AARO people and some of these others — what do you make of that?”
JH: “Well, so I, you know, — I don’t have particular thoughts on Grusch. You know, I took very seriously some of the allegations he had and AARO and others investigated…”
ML: “Uhuh?”
JH: “…and I don't see any evidence that there was any sweeping of things under the carpet. I asked specific questions about his specific testimony, and a lot of what he had was, first of all, you know, hearsay, if you will.”
ML: “Ahuh?”
JH: “It wasn’t his personal experience. And secondly, you know, a lot of this is misinterpretation of real things.”
ML: “Yeah?”
They reach the street as light’s about to change.
JH: “Let’s make this light.”
They hustle across busy street.
ICYMI — will post-Turner era HPSCI investigate UAPs?
JH: “So, for example, you know, the Air Force has programs and others have programs that contemplate the possibility that there could be, you know, anomalous materials or whatever, but none — to date, I have seen no evidence that any of these programs actually have any evidence whatsoever of any UAP, unusual materials, unusual life forms, etc.”
ML: “Did you catch his public testimony in front of Oversight [Committee]…?”
JH: “Nope.”
ML: “…2023? A lot of what he said and testified, he’s — like, half of it, he said, ‘I can only answer that in the SCIF.’ Like, have you guys on Intel — have you guys heard his allegations? Like, because I don't think — I think he sat down with the Senate Intel staff, but I don't think you guys did.”
JH: “Yeah, I personally have never met him.”
ML: “Yeah?”
JH: “And it's been a couple months since I thought about this, and your audience hangs on every word so I've got to be pretty careful about this.”
ML: “Yeah, fair.”
JH: “No, I didn't see the testimony. I've never met him. I've certainly looked at many of his concerns and allegations, and...”
Himes shrugs, signaling no there there.
ML: “Do you think this could actually be good?”
Laslo laughs.
ML: “Like maybe the people on Oversight and this new Secrets Task Force are gonna get some of the information that you already seem to know?”
Himes phone rings.
ML: “Saved by the phone!”
Laslo laughs.
JH: “This is the Luna, the Luna thing?”
Himes on phone, speaking to an aide as he’s about to enter the Rayburn House Office Building.
JH: “Hey — I'm two minutes, I'm a minute from the office. Yeah. Be right there.”
ML: “I can let you go. You got a day job.”*
*Burlison had texted Laslo telling him to meet in the Speaker’s Lobby just off the House floor, so Ask a Pol was short on time too!
JH: “Yeah, yeah, yeah. I don't know.”
ML: “Well, I think people are gonna be surprised that you know Grusch’s name and that you've looked into it.”
JH: “No, he was pretty high profile. And you know, though I'm not always happy about it, the UAP folks are, as the young ones say, in my DMs.”
Laslo laughs, Himes joins in.
ML: “There you go.”
JH: “See ya later.”
Himes enters his office building.
ML: “Preciate ya!”
Laslo heads back to the Capitol to interview Burlison.
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