‘We’ve Been Given Marching Orders’: Burlison at the Varginha 30th-Anniversary UAP Press Conference
Summary
Daily Caller News Foundation reporting from the UAP (UFO) Press Conference hosted by filmmaker james-fox in January 2026, marking the 30th anniversary of the alleged 1996 varginha-incident in brazil. Rep. eric-burlison (R-MO) attended and used the venue to publicly press for passage of the uap-disclosure-act and standalone UAP whistleblower protections, framing the legislative push as “marching orders” from witness testimony. The conference featured first-person accounts from alleged Varginha witnesses, including physician italo-venturelli, who described examining a small, large-headed, teardrop-skulled “being not of this planet” on January 20, 1996. Burlison stated he remains “skeptical until I get my hands on physical evidence” while pledging to “take it seriously investigating myself.”
Key Claims
- Rep. Burlison publicly endorses passing the uap-disclosure-act and either bundled or standalone uap-whistleblower-protections (Burlison).
- Burlison says Congress has been “given marching orders” by witness testimony and that “it’s time to get the receipts” (Burlison).
- The January 2026 event marked the 30th anniversary of the varginha-incident, during which the Brazilian government allegedly captured two non-human entities (event premise per Fox / conference).
- Multiple alleged Varginha witnesses say they suppressed their accounts for decades due to fear of professional and physical retaliation (Fox / conference witnesses).
- italo-venturelli, identified as the physician called to assess the captured entity on Jan 20, 1996, describes a calm, ~7-year-old-sized, teardrop-headed being with apparent above-human intelligence (Venturelli).
- Filmmaker james-fox argues that in-person witness encounters are qualitatively more compelling than filmed testimony (Fox).
Notable Quotes
“We’ve been given marching orders — we have legislation that we need to pass. We’ve heard from a lot of witnesses. It’s time for action. And it’s time to get the receipts. So it’s time to pass the UAP disclosure act. It is time to pass whistleblower protection, within that or a separate act.” — Rep. Eric Burlison
“I’m looking forward to actually getting my hands on any kind of real physical evidence — whether that’s material evidence or biological samples, maybe from the corpse … at the end of the day, I remain skeptical until I get my hands on physical evidence.” — Rep. Eric Burlison
“In 1996, on Jan. 20, I was called in to see a patient. Getting there I realized it was a being not of this planet … resembling a 7-year-old, white, no bad odor. The head was large, teardrop-shaped, a small mouth … His way of looking suggested an intelligence greater than ours, than human.” — Italo Venturelli
“It’s one thing to watch witnesses testify in a documentary or make claims in a documentary. It’s very different to look someone in the eye, to shake their hand, to meet their wife, to meet their colleagues.” — James Fox