>>15254From Grok:
"""
The drones over New Jersey stirred up a lot of buzz late last year, especially in November and December 2024, when people started spotting them across the state and beyond. It was a big deal—thousands of sightings reported, some near sensitive spots like military bases, and folks were freaking out, speculating everything from government ops to foreign spies. Then, just as you noticed, it all seemed to quiet down.
Here’s what went down: On January 28, 2025, the White House, via Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, said the drones were mostly authorized by the FAA for "research and various other reasons," with a chunk being hobbyists jumping on the bandwagon. They framed it as no big threat—“not the enemy,” as Leavitt put it. This echoed what the Biden administration had hinted at earlier, suggesting many sightings were just planes or helicopters misidentified in the hype.
But that explanation didn’t sit right with everyone. Local leaders, like New Jersey Congressman Josh Gottheimer, called it vague and confusing—what research? Whose drones? The FAA had slapped flight restrictions over dozens of towns in December, which only fueled the mystery, and then let them lapse in January. Meanwhile, posts on X and some news outlets pointed out contradictions: the FAA had told Congress they didn’t know what was up, and military brass, like the Joint Chiefs, admitted they couldn’t pin down the operators or origins. So, the "it’s all fine" line felt like a dodge to some.
Why the sudden silence? Could be a few things. The official story might’ve calmed the public enough to move on, or maybe media attention just shifted—Trump’s inauguration and other headlines took over. On X, skeptics still call it a cover-up, suggesting the government’s hiding something bigger, like a tech test or a security lapse they don’t want to admit. Without hard proof, though, it’s all guesswork. The drones didn’t vanish; the chatter did.
"""
