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This Gerald R. Ford Presidential Library file holds 1966 press releases on UFOs from House Minority Leader Gerald R. Ford. In a March 28, 1966 letter, Ford asks the House Armed Services and Science and Astronautics Committees to hold hearings, calling the Air Force's swamp gas explanation of the Michigan sightings flippant. In April statements, Ford says the Air Force has agreed to a university study. The file also contains the October 7, 1966 Air Force announcement choosing the University of Colorado, with Dr. Edward U. Condon as director.
CONGRESSMAN GERALD R. FORD NEWS RELEASEHOUSE REPUBLICAN LEADER FOR SUNDAY A.M. RELEASE APRIL 3, 1966 STATEMENT BY HOUSE MINORITY LEADER GERALD R. FORD, a-MICHIGAN As 1 had expected, some persons have ridiculed =y call for aoo~esmQ~ investigation of unidentified flying objects (UFO's). These people are a fraction of those who have given me their reaction to my proposal. overwhelming majori~y of those a congressional Those who apparently are a closed-door h Rep. Joseph E. two and Astronautics C member of my staff The present Science pressif\ a vie\ in letters tt be useful and is needed. a congressional investigation of UFO's ouse A ~ ServJr es Committee has scheduled Tues~y with the Air Force and that a three-man subcommittee which held behalf of the House Science in conversation with a earings. ittee chairman, Rep. George P. Miller, D-Calif., has shied away from a UFO probe at this committee does not have jurisdiction over the Air Force. the late Rep. Overton Brooks, D-La., obviously had dif eteot tapped Karth to summon Air Force witnesses a after a flurry of UFO sightings in 1961. Karth has n oral report to the full committee but never thin&_ to uae pui)lic. According to Charles F. Ducander, the staff ector, no record was made of conversation between Karth s·ubco~ittee members and Air Force witnesses. The hearings, he said, took place in Karth's congressional office. I have never said th•t I believe any of the reported UFO sLghflt.ags l indicate visits to earth from another planet. Apart from pranks and natural phenomena, some of these objects may well be products of experimentation by our own military. If this is so, why doesn't the Air Force concede it and in this way reassure the American people? There would be no need to go into detail on the nature of the experiments.
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