Sign in Subscribe

Chuck Schumer

Senate Democratic leader who wrote the UAP Disclosure Act with Mike Rounds in 2023 and has re-offered it to every defense bill since.

Current role: U.S. Senator for New York (D) and Senate Minority Leader; lead Senate sponsor of the UAP Disclosure Act, most recently filed as S.Amdt.6344 to the FY2027 NDAA

Former roles:

  • Senate Majority Leader (2021–2025)

@SenSchumer on X

Background

Senior U.S. Senator from New York and leader of the Senate Democratic Caucus since 2017. He was Senate Majority Leader from 2021 to January 2025 and has been Minority Leader since the 119th Congress convened. In July 2023 he and Sen. Mike Rounds introduced the UAP Disclosure Act, modelled on the JFK Assassination Records Collection Act, as an amendment to the FY2024 NDAA. A reduced version became law that December without the independent Review Board. He has reintroduced the full text in each NDAA cycle since, so far without success.

On the record

  • 2026-07-15 – Capitol, Ask a Pol – asked whether he had looked at the PURSUE files: "Not yet, no." Asked whether the UAP Disclosure Act would advance this year: "Hope so." Ask a Pol
  • 2026-06-24 – Senate floor – submitted S.Amdt.6344, the Senate UAP Disclosure Act, to S. 4784 (FY2027 NDAA) with Rounds. The Senate has not taken up the bill since cloture on the motion to proceed failed on 2026-07-14. congress.gov · CRS
  • 2026-05-08 – statement on the first PURSUE release – "For decades, UFO disclosure has been a distant object — unidentified and unexplained," and "That's starting to change. I'll keep pushing until we land on the truth." Fox News
  • 2025-07-31 – Ask a Pol – confirmed he had reintroduced the UAP Disclosure Act as an amendment to the FY2026 NDAA, with text virtually identical to the 2023 original, and suggested the obstacle lies in the House: "Gotta let people know the truth … whatever it is." Ask a Pol · Text comparison, D. D. Johnson
  • 2025-01-23 – X – after President Trump ordered the release of JFK, RFK and MLK assassination files, urged him to do the same for UFO files. X
  • 2023-07-14 – press release with Rounds – "For decades [Americans] have been fascinated by objects mysterious & unexplained and it's long past time they get some answers," and "[They] have a right to learn about technologies of unknown origins, non-human intelligence, & unexplainable phenomena. We are not only working to declassify what the government has previously learned about these phenomena but to create a pipeline for future research to be made public." Also: "Sunlight's the greatest disinfectant. Lots of people say, 'they're disclosing it because they know something that we don't know.' Well, let them disclose it and we'll all know the truth and we'll be better off with the truth." Senate Democrats

Responses and criticism

  • 2026-07-23 – Rep. Eric Burlison, after the House adopted his version of the Act: "I never thought in a million years I'd be agreeing with Chuck Schumer on something. But when it comes to transparency and accountability for the American people, we do agree." KZRG
  • 2026-03-15 – Sen. Rounds, his co-author, on the Act's prospects: "But I have not talked to Senator Schumer about it." Ask a Pol
  • 2025-12-18 – the FY2026 NDAA (Pub. L. 119-60) was signed without the UAP Disclosure Act for the third cycle running. Who removed it is disputed: Burlison blamed Senate Appropriations staff, Rounds guessed the House, and Liberation Times, citing unnamed sources, blamed Sen. McConnell's office. None of this is confirmed. Pub. L. 119-60 · Ask a Pol · Liberation Times

Timeline of involvement

  • 2023-07-14 – introduces the UAP Disclosure Act with Rounds as an NDAA amendment
  • 2023-12-22 – FY2024 NDAA enacted with a reduced version (records collection, no Review Board)
  • 2025-01-03 – becomes Senate Minority Leader
  • 2025-07-31 – reintroduces the Act for the FY2026 NDAA
  • 2025-12-18 – FY2026 NDAA enacted without the Act
  • 2026-06-24 – files S.Amdt.6344 to the FY2027 NDAA
  • 2026-07-14 – Senate cloture on the NDAA fails 50–46; amendment pending

Part of the Key People in Disclosure series. Verified 2026-10-10. Spotted an error? Reach out.