The White House says Americans should not be worried about an extra-terrestrial origin for the objects the U.S. military has shot down over American and Canadian airspace in recent days.
National Secuirty Council spokesman John Kirby shot down the popular theory during a White House press briefing Monday. He told reporters that there is no reason for Americans to be concerned about aliens, despite NORAD chief Gen. Glen VanHerck saying he wasn't taking anything off the table.
A reporter pressed Kirby about VanHerck's comments during Monday's briefing, asking whether the Biden administration was also entertaining the possibility.
"I don't think the American people need to be worried about aliens. Period," Kirby responded bluntly.
CHINESE SPY CRAFT PAYLOAD LOCATED OFF WATERS OF SOUTH CAROLINA, MOSTLY INTACT: US OFFICIAL
U.S. fighter jets have shot down three unidentified "objects" in as many days this week, but the military has yet to confirm what they are.
"I'll let the intel community and the counterintelligence community figure that out. I haven't ruled out anything," VanHerck told reporters Sunday when asked about the possibility of the objects being extra-terrestrial.
"At this point we continue to assess every threat or potential threat, unknown, that approaches North America with an attempt to identify it," he added.
VanHerck also confirmed that both U.S. and Canadian NORAD forces have ramped up their radar systems to make them more sensitive, a possible explanation for why the objects seem to have appeared so suddenly.
The object President Biden ordered shot down over Lake Huron on Sunday was described as "octagonal" in shape with strings hanging off, flying at roughly 20,000 feet. U.S. military officials had stated that each of the aircraft had no discernable propulsion systems.
The three objects flew much lower than the Chinese spy balloon shot down off the coast of South Carolina more than a week ago, which floated well above civilian air traffic at 60,000 feet.
The U.S. and Canada are currently working to recover debris from all four craft. Only the one shot down off of the U.S. East Coast is known to be of Chinese origin, however.
