GEAR JRNL

Sunday, February 15, 2026

Do aliens exist? Obama jokes that they're real – but not at Area 51

Administrator February 15, 2026

It's a question that's been debated and debunked for decades: Are aliens real?

The word "alien" can create mental images of different creatures in people's heads thanks to Hollywood − gentle and wrinkly in Steven Spielberg's "E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial," blue and rambunctious in Disney's "Lilo&Stitch" and the stereotypical green beings with big eyes come to life in "Invaders from Mars."

Former President Barack Obama jokingly confirmed their existencein a Feb. 14 interviewwith podcast host and YouTuber Brian Tyler Cohen before shutting down the conspiracy that creatures from outer space are held at Area 51, the remote and classified United States Air Force facility in the Nevada desert.

Barack Obama served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. Take a look at his life in photos.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Former US President Barack Obama (R) holds up US Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris's hand as they greet the crowd together during a campaign event at James R Hallford Stadium in Clarkston, Georgia on Oct. 24, 2024.

Former US President Barack Obama (R) holds up US Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris's hand as they greet the crowd together during a campaign event at James R Hallford Stadium in Clarkston, Georgia on Oct. 24, 2024.

Former president Barack Obama takes the stage to speak to a crowd of supporters while campaigning for Kamala Harris at Huntington Place in Detroit on Tuesday, Oct. 22, 2024.

Obama joined his former Vice President, now-President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris at the White House on April 5, 2022. The officials gathered to celebrate the 2010 passage of the Affordable Care Act "Obamacare."

The former president appeared at the Copenhagen Democracy Summit at The Royal Danish Playhouse on June 10, 2022.

Obama gave a speech at the 26th "Conference of the Parties" in Glasgow, Scotland on Nov. 8, 2021. The event is a gathering of all the countries signed on to the U.N. Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Paris Climate Agreement.

Obama speaks at a Get Out the Vote rally in November 2020 for then-Democratic presidential candidate Biden.

Obama and NBA commissioner Adam Silver shared a laugh before the NBA Finals Game 2 between the Golden State Warriors and the Toronto Raptors on June 2, 2019.

Obama at the game between the North Carolina Tar Heels and Duke Blue Devils on Feb. 20, 2019, in Durham, N.C.

Obama spoke at the memorial service for his 2008 presidential rival, former Sen. John McCain, at the National Cathedral in Washington on Sept. 1, 2018. “A warrior. A statesman. A patriot. Who embodied so much that is best in America,” Obama said of McCain. “He made us better presidents. Just as he made the Senate better. Just as he made this country better.”

At the ceremony for his newly unveiled portrait at the Smithsonian's National Portrait Gallery on Feb. 12, 2018, Obama joked that he tried to negotiate less gray hair and smaller ears.

He met with competitors from Team USA on Day 7 of the Invictus Games 2017 on Sept. 29, 2017, in Toronto.

President Obama presents the Presidential Medal of Freedom to Diana Ross during an East Room ceremony at the White House on Nov. 22, 2016. The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest honor for civilians in the United States of America.

Obama stumps for Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton in Ann Arbor, Mich., on the eve of the election in 2016.

Presidential nominee Hillary Clinton takes the stage with Obama after his speech during the 2016 Democratic National Convention at Wells Fargo Center on July 27, 2016, in Philadelphia.

Obama delivers the State of the Union address on Jan. 12, 2016, from the House chamber of the United States Capitol. Vice President Joe Biden and Speaker Paul Ryan are behind the president.

With tears running down his cheeks, President Obama talks Jan. 5, 2016, about the victims of the 2012 Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting and about his efforts to increase federal gun control. Without approval from Congress, Obama sidestepped the legislative process with executive actions to expand background checks for some firearm purchases and step up federal enforcement of existing gun laws.

Pope Francis, arriving from a trip to Cuba, is greeted by Obama at Joint Base Andrews on Sept. 22, 2015.

President Obama awards Ryan M. Pitts, a former active duty Army Staff Sergeant, the Medal of Honor for conspicuous gallantry on July 21, 2014. Staff Sgt. Pitts was the ninth living recipient of the Medal of Honor for actions in Iraq or Afghanistan.

Obama poses for a picture with Miami Dolphins head coach Don Shula, right, during the 1972 Dolphins White House visit on Aug. 20, 2013.

LeBron James talks while presenting a team-signed basketball to Obama as the White House honors the NBA Champion Miami Heat on Jan. 28, 2013.

President Barack Obama and first lady Michelle Obama at the Inaugural Ball in Washington, D.C., on Jan. 21, 2013.

Barack and Michelle Obama, Joe and Jill Biden wave at an election night party on Nov. 7, 2012, in Chicago. Obama defeated Republican challenger former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.

Obama shares a laugh with former White House aide Reggie Love as they watch the U.S. Senior Men's National Team and Brazil play during a pre-Olympic exhibition basketball game on July 16, 2012. in Washington, D.C.

Obama talks with student athletes at Maquoketa High School in Maquoketa, Iowa, on Aug. 16, 2011, during a swing through the Midwest.

The 2010 World Series champion San Francisco Giants visit the White House and President Obama on July 25, 2011. Obama holds a gift jersey with Giants legend Willie Mays on his right and GM Brian Sabean on his left.

Obama talks to David Greenspon, owner of Competitive Edge in Des Moines, at an invitation-only event at Jeff and Sandy Hatfield Clubb's home on Sept. 29, 2010. The topic of discussion was challenges faced by middle class families.

Obama throws out the ceremonial first pitch at the All-Star Game on July 14, 2009, in St. Louis.

Notre Dame conferred an honorary degree of Doctor of Laws on Obama at the university's 164th Commencement ceremony.

Obama runs with first dog Bo as the Obamas show off their new Portuguese water dog to the gathered press on the South Lawn of the White House in April 2009.

Obama greets Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi before he addresses a joint session of Congress on Feb. 24, 2009.

President of the United States Barack Obama and Michelle Obama during the Inaugural Parade on Jan. 20, 2009.

President Barack Obama takes the oath of office from Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts on Jan. 20, 2009.

The president-elect waves to the crowd at the Wilmington Station during a whistle-stop train ride to Washington on Jan. 17, 2009.

While on the campaign trail, Sen. Barack Obama samples some fresh peaches on a visit to the Greensboro Curb Market, a fruit and vegetable market in North Carolina.

Democratic presidential candidate Obama drives a bumper car with his daughter Sasha at the Iowa State Fair on Aug. 16, 2007, in Des Moines, Iowa.

Sen. Barack Obama poses for a portrait on Feb. 2, 2006, at the Capitol.

" style="max-width:100%; height:auto; border-radius:6px; margin:10px 0;" loading="lazy" /> Obama talks in his office with USA TODAY reporter Kathy Kiely on Feb. 2, 2006.

Obama talks in his office with USA TODAY reporter Kathy Kiely on Feb. 2, 2006.

Barack Obama, graduate of Harvard Law School 1991, is photographed on campus after he was named head of the Harvard Law Review in 1990.

See former President Barack Obama's journey to White House and his life after

Barack Obama served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. Take a look at his life in photos.

'I haven't seen them': Obama debunks Area 51

In the interview, Cohen held a lightning round of questions with the former president, including asking about a pressing issue for some people in the United States: Do aliens exist?

"They're real, but I haven't seen them," Obama said in response to Cohen's question. "They're not being kept at Area 51. There's no underground facility, unless there's this enormous conspiracy, and they hid it from the president of the United States."

More:'Clown show': Barack Obama on Trump post depicting Obamas as apes

Proceeding with the lightning round, Cohen then asked Obama, "What was the first question you wanted answered when you became president?"

"Where are the aliens?" Obama responded quickly before laughing.

Aliens remain topic of interest for Americans

Questions around the existence of aliens and life beyond Earth have swirled for years, with interestreignited by recent hearingson Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena, or UAPs. They're commonly called UFOs, or Unidentified Flying Objects.

More:Congress holds hearing on UAPs (or UFOs). What are they?

USA TODAY previously reported thatnearly half of Americans believethe U.S. government is concealing information about UFOs, which have become synonymous with alien lifeforms.

Still,the Department of War, formerly known as the Department of Defense,advises that most UAP sightings can actually be identified as planes, balloons, drones and weather events.

Kate Perez covers national trends and breaking news for USA TODAY. You can reach her at kperez@usatodayco.com or on X @katecperez_.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Obama jokes that aliens are real, debunks Area 51 in podcast interview

Rep. Massie says he doesn't have confidence in Bondi as attorney general

Administrator February 15, 2026

Republican Rep. Thomas Massie said Sunday that he did not approve of how Attorney General Pam Bondiconducted herselfover the Department of Justice's release of files related to sex offenderJeffrey Epsteinin a combative hearing before the House Judiciary Committee on Wednesday.

"I don't think she did very well," Massie told ABC News' "This Week" co-anchor Martha Raddatz. "She came with a book full of insults, one for each congressperson. She obviously had one for me."

Asked by Raddatz if he had confidence in Bondi, Massie said he didn't think Bondi had confidence in herself.

Lawmakers who reviewed unredacted Epstein files blast DOJ over blacked-out names

"She wasn't confident enough to engage in anything but name-calling in a hearing," Massie said. "So no, I don't have confidence in her. She hasn't got any sort of accountability there at the DOJ."

ABC News - PHOTO: Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., appears on ABC News'

During Massie's line of questioning in Wednesday's hearing, Bondi said the congressman had "Trump derangement syndrome," an attack President Donald Trump occasionally wages against those who criticize him.

At another point, Democratic Rep. Pramila Jayapal asked the group of Epstein victims sitting behind Bondi to raise their hand if they have not been able to meet with Bondi's Justice Department. All of the survivors present raised their hand. Bondi did not turn to look at those victims, even after Jayapal asked her to, calling it "theatrics."

Massie called Bondi's decision to not look at the survivors "cold" and said that he thought she was "afraid" to do so.

Wednesday's hearing came after the Justice Department released over 3 million pages of files from the Epstein case. The release of the files has triggered a wave of criticism and resignations across the world. In the U.S., several powerful figures were named -- but not accused of wrongdoing -- in the latest file release.

Speaker Johnson calls DOJ surveillance of members reviewing unredacted Epstein files not 'appropriate'

Massie has accused the Justice Department of exposing victim identities in some cases while over-redacting powerful men and possible co-conspirators to Epstein's sex trafficking operation in others.

"[Bondi] admitted that 40 minutes after I pointed out to the DOJ that they had over redacted some of the documents, they did unredact those documents," Massie said. "It's clear that their work is not done here yet."

Shortly after the release of the files, the Justice Department allowed members of Congress to go in-person to view versions of the files with fewer redactions. Massie said he still was not satisfied.

"I know the DOJ wants to say they're done with this document production. The problem is they've taken down documents before we were able to go over to the DOJ and look at the unredacted versions," Massie said.

Massie, who mostly votes with Trump, said that he thought Merrick Garland, former President Joe Biden's attorney general, performed better in terms of optics when he appeared before the committee.

'Very serious.' Denmark, Greenland fear Trump still wants to take control

Administrator February 15, 2026

MUNICH, Germany − The leaders ofDenmark and Greenlanddo not think the crisis over the Arctic territory has ended and believe PresidentDonald Trumpis still "very serious" about acquiring the territory.

Mette Frederiksen, Denmark's prime minister, and her Greenlandic counterpart Jens-Frederik Nielsen, made the comment about the semi-autonomous Danish island while appearing at theMunich Security Conferenceon Feb 14.

"I think the desire from the U.S. president is exactly the same," said Frederiksen, when asked during a panel how to describe the situation now that formal talks over the issue have begun. "He's very serious about this," she said.

'Europe will never be irrelevant.'Rubio mends fences after Vance bombshell

Responding to the same question about whether the talks wouldappease Trump, Nielsen said "we cannot lower our shoulders." He said that Trump's desire to acquire Greenland was "still there."

Their lingering anxiety over Trump's interest inGreenlandcomes even though both leaders said they held constructive talks with Secretary of State Marco Rubio at the conference. The United States, Denmark and Greenland launched talks in late January to resolve the diplomatic crisis.

But virtually no details about the discussion have been made public beyond a statement from Trump while he was attending theWorld Economic Forumlast month, when he said the "framework of a future deal with respect to Greenland" had been reached.

'Y'all belong in Louisiana.'The strange case of Trump's missing Greenland envoy

Greenland and Denmark caught by suprise

That announcement appeared to catch Denmark and Greenland by surprise. And NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte later clarified that he did not discuss Greenland's sovereignty with Trump.

People attend a protest against President Donald Trump's demand that the Arctic island be ceded to the U.S., calling for it to be allowed to determine its own future, in front of the U.S. consulate in Nuuk, Greenland, Jan. 17, 2026.

People bear Greenlandic flags as they march to protest against President Donald Trump and his announced intent to acquire Greenland on Jan. 17, 2026 in Nuuk, Greenland. Greenlandic, Danish and other European leaders are hoping they can still avert an intervention by the United States to forcefully acquire the island as Trump continues to insist the U.S. must have Greenland, suggesting even by military means if necessary.

Protesters take part in a demonstration to show support for Greenland in Copenhagen, Denmark on Jan. 17, 2026.

Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen walks with people during a protest against President Donald Trump's demand that the Arctic island be ceded to the U.S., calling for it to be allowed to determine its own future, in Nuuk, Greenland, Jan. 17, 2026.

A child is wrapped in Greenlandic flag as people attend a protest against President Donald Trump's demand that the Arctic island be ceded to the U.S., calling for it to be allowed to determine its own future, in front of the U.S. consulate in Nuuk, Greenland, Jan. 17, 2026.

Jens Kjeldsen, a 70-year-old carpenter and former judge from Greenland, paces with flags of Denmark, the Faroe Islands and Greenland (Kingdom of Denmark) protesting outside the US consulate's wooden cabin in Nuuk, Greenland, on Jan. 20, 2026. The 70-year-old carpenter and former judge from Greenland is holding daily early morning protests outside the US consulate this week in hopes of getting his message across to US officials.

Greenland's Prime Minister Jens-Frederik Nielsen waves a flag during a protest against President Donald Trump's demand that the Arctic island be ceded to the U.S., calling for it to be allowed to determine its own future, in Nuuk, Greenland, Jan. 17, 2026.

People wave Greenlandic flags as they take part in a demonstration that gathered almost a third of the city population to protest against President Donald Trump's plans to take Greenland, on Jan. 17, 2026, in Nuuk, Greenland. Trump escalated his quest to acquire Greenland, threatening multiple European nations with tariffs of up to 25 percent until his purchase of the Danish territory is achieved. Trump's threats came as thousands of people protested in the capital of Greenland against his wish to acquire the mineral-rich island at the gateway to the Arctic.

A mother and daughter with their faces painted with the Greenlandic flag stand on a street after they participated in a march to protest against President Donald Trump and his announced intent to acquire Greenland on Jan. 17, 2026 in Nuuk, Greenland. Greenlandic, Danish and other European leaders are hoping they can still avert an intervention by the United States to forcefully acquire the island as U.S. President Donald Trump continues to insist the U.S. must have Greenland, suggesting even by military means if necessary.

A couple depart after they participated in a march to protest against President Donald Trump and his announced intent to acquire Greenland on Jan. 17, 2026 in Nuuk, Greenland. Greenlandic, Danish and other European leaders are hoping they can still avert an intervention by the United States to forcefully acquire the island as Trump continues to insist the U.S. must have Greenland, suggesting even by military means if necessary.

Protesters on City Square during a protest in support of Greenland on Jan. 17, 2026 in Copenhagen, Denmark. The United States president continues to insist the U.S. must have Greenland, even by military means if necessary. Greenland is a semi-autonomous territory of Denmark, which has forcefully pushed back on the U.S. threats, saying they jeopardize the future of NATO.

Greenlanders march in defiance of Trump's efforts to claim the island

US official:Greenland action could come within 'weeks or months'

"I hope we can find a solution to all this," Denmark's Foreign Minister Lars Løkke Rasmussen told reporters, including USA TODAY, on the sidelines of the conference in Germany's Bavarian capital.

Nielsen said the saga was taking a toll on theGreenlandic people, who have repeatedly expressed in polls that while they want eventually to become independent of Denmark, they have no interest at all in becoming American.

Invasion, coercion, purchase.How Trump's Greenland episode could end

"If I think about my people, we are so proud. We live in a harsh environment, we are resilient, we live in a land where nobody was able to live for many, many, many years. There's a reason why we are the ones left," Nielsen joked during a discussion aboutArctic security. His statement drew laughter from the audience.

"The paradox," he added, "is that the Greenlandic people have never felt threatened, and now [for] the first time they feel unsafe for real, [it is] with an ally who is talking about acquiring them, buying them and so on. It's outrageous."

Underdog Denmark:USA's depth wins out in men's hockey comeback

'Red line.'Greenland shuts down Trump on sovereignty for US bases

Frederiksen said Denmark is willing to work with the Trump administration to find a solution but "there are of course things you cannot compromise on." She named a state's sovereignty and territorial integrity as two of those things.

A seniorGreenlandic officialpreviously told USA TODAY that an idea floated by Trump that the United States could effectively take ownership of American military bases in Greenland also marked a "red line."

Frederiksen said that revising a 1951 defense agreement between Denmark and the United States likely offers a "very easy" way for Washington to "have a stronger footprint in Greenland." Trump has said his desire to acquireGreenlandis driven by a combination of national security strategy and access to natural resources.

Kremlin on Greenland:Russia warns of response to any US weapons deployment

NATO said on Feb. 11 that it had launched a mission to strengthen its presence in the Arctic, part of an effort to defuse tensions within the alliance prompted by Trump's push to acquire Greenland from Denmark.

"We don't think it's over," said Frederiksen in Munich.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY:Denmark, Greenland worry Trump still wants to take control

41 of the Best Romantic Films That Will Sweep You Off Your Feet

Administrator February 15, 2026

"Hearst Magazines and Yahoo may earn commission or revenue on some items through these links."

Romanceis hard to come by in person these days. Our group chats are full of dispatches from our single friends on the front lines of war (a.k.a. awkward first dates), with matches who won't text back or weirdos who'll at least make for great stories later. The ladies yearn forchalanceor for someone tomatch their freak. And why not? Everyone deserves a little romance—but sometimes it's easier to find onscreen than in real life. That's where romance movies come in.

Hollywood loves a good love story, whether it's a tear-jerking Old Hollywood melodrama or a heartwarming '90srom-com. These are the kind of films that inspire and transport us—and sometimes even distract us when that one person leaves us on read. Whether or not you're searching for your Mr. Darcy, the titles in the list below are all great picks for your next movie night. Whether you invite a date over to watch it is your call.

With contributions from Claire Stern Milch, Madison Feller, and Juliana Ukiomogbe.

When Harry Met Sally(1989)

"Meg Ryan. Billy Crystal. Rob Reiner. Cable-knit sweaters. A fake orgasm at Katz's Deli. Nora Ephron did not play around when she wrote this perfect rom-com about whether a man and a woman can really be friends without their feelings getting in the way. Over 30 years later, we'll still have what she's having."—Erica Gonzales, deputy editor, digital content