Who?

Rep. Nancy Mace (R-SC)

LISTEN: Laslo & Mace

Ask a Pol asks:

On UAP, have you been a part of any of these talks with the FBI or with Stephen Miller’s new UFO group in the White House?

Key Mace:

“A couple times by different agencies,” Rep. Nancy Mace exclusively tells Ask a Pol.

When does the public get to see that stuff?

“Are they going to release those tapes that I know I’ve seen that aren’t out yet?” Mace says. “It is curious. I want people to see them. I want people to see what I’ve seen. That’s what I want.”

We need you, fam!

Get 25% off for 1 year

25% off SALE — cause our revenue’s down 25%!

Subscribers are up, but revenue’s waaay down.

Ask a Pol’s on Venmo, PayPal, Cash App — or just buy the team a beer!

Subscribe now

Caught our ear:

Have you reiterated that to the White House? Like, does Stephen Miller’s group know where to look?

“I didn’t know Stephen Miller was doing that,” Mace tells us. “I didn’t realize that he was. I’ll say something.”

Leave a comment

TRANSCRIPT: Rep. Nancy Mace (9-1-2026)

SCENE: After voting on the House floor, Rep. Nancy Mace and her new puppy walk back to her office across the street from the US Capitol.

Laslo: On UAP, have you been a part of any of these talks with FBI or with Stephen Miller’s group in the White House?

Mace: Uh, a couple times by different agencies.

Laslo: When does the public get to see that stuff?

Mace: Are they going to release those tapes that I know I’ve seen that aren’t out yet?

Laslo: Really? That’s curious.

Mace: It is curious. I want people to see them.

Laslo: Yeah?

Mace: I want people to see what I’ve seen. That’s what I want.

Laslo: That’s interesting. Have you reiterated that to the White House? Like, does Stephen Miller’s group know where to look?

Mace: I didn’t know Stephen Miller was doing that.

Laslo: Yeah.

Mace: Yeah. I didn’t realize that he was. I’ll say something. But yeah.

Laslo: Yeah?

Mace: It’s fascinating. That’s interesting.

Laslo: Bye puppy.

Who?

Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN)

LISTEN: Laslo & Burchett

Ask a Pol asks:

We hear you guys are working a lot with Stephen Miller? And then also this FBI group?

Key Burchett:

“Yeah, they’ve been very cooperative,” Rep. Tim Burchett exclusively tells Ask a Pol UAP. “Stephen Miller has put it on a priority. He’s actually assigned people to it, so I think that shows that it goes to the highest levels.”

HELP!!! Please.

Subscribe now

Ask a Pol’s also on Venmo, PayPal, Cash App…

…or just buy the team a beer!

Caught our ear:

There’s a rumor that we’re getting some big UAP news?

“I’m not going to believe it until I see it, brother,” Burchett tells us. “We get those leaks a lot, and then some of them bear a little fruit and some of them don’t. So I’m just going to wait and hold my opinion until I see it.”

Leave a comment

TRANSCRIPT: Rep. Tim Burchett (9-1-2026)

SCENE: Ask a Pol’s Matt Laslo walks and talks with Rep. Tim Burchett as he heads from a vote in the US Capitol to his office across the street just ahead of Congress’ 10-day Labor Day recess.

Matt Laslo: There’s a rumor that we’re getting some big UAP news?

Rep. Tim Burchett: ‘Fake’ UAP news?

Laslo: No, BIG.

Burchett: ‘Big,’ oh.

Laslo: Earth-moving.

Burchett: Yeah, they say that, but I, I’m not going to believe it until I see it, brother. We get those leaks a lot, and then some of them bear a little fruit and some of them don’t. So I’m just going to wait and hold my opinion until I see it.

Laslo: I hear you guys are working a lot with Stephen Miller? And then also this FBI group?

Burchett: Yeah, they’ve been very cooperative. Stephen Miller has put it on a priority. He’s actually assigned people to it, so I think that shows that it goes to the highest levels.

Laslo: And I hear the FBI is — do you feel like the FBI is being honest?

Burchett: Do what?

Laslo: Do you feel like the FBI is being honest partners in this?

Burchett: I don’t know. In the past they haven’t. But there’s a new chief in the White House, so let’s see what happens. I’d like to be pleasantly surprised.

Laslo: What should folks expect next?

Burchett: I just want some proof. I’m tired of it. I want them just to come clean with everything. But I realize that’s not the way this place works. I’m afraid I’m just going to be disappointed, so I’m not going to get my hopes up. But I’m going to keep pushing.

Laslo: Yes, sir. Have a good one.

Share Ask a Pol UAP

Who?

Rep. Eric Burlison (R-MO) — Secrets Task Forces; Oversight & Government Reform Committee

LISTEN: Laslo & Burlison

Ask a Pol asks:

What’s up with the whispers that UFO whistleblower David Grusch might get his NDA waived? Are you talking with Stephen Miller and the administration about that?

Key Burlison:

“They’ll waive it, but what he needs is his clearances all brought back,” Rep. Eric Burlison exclusively tells Ask a Pol. “If you don’t clear his record and demonstrate that you’re able to make him right, you’re sending a message to everybody else who might want to come forward that you’re going to get punished if you come forward.”

Share Ask a Pol UAP

Will Grusch get an apology…?

Will President Donald Trump personally be granting Grusch a waiver? What would that look like?

“Yeah. I mean, honestly, the administration — and I’ve talked to them, they will readily admit that it was probably, they probably went too far with him,” Burlison says.

Who in the Trump administration would admit that — the FBI?

“I’m not going to say,” Burlison says.

We need you!!!

Subscribers are up, but revenue waaaay down. Help!

Subscribe now

We’re also on Venmo, PayPal, Cash App — or just buy us a beer!

Caught our ear:

“The DOE [Department of Energy] is definitely part of this,” Burlison tells us. “I made sure that they did not exclude the DOE, because there’s just — there’s so much lore about them and their involvement.”

Do you think that’s where it might be? Or do you still think the Pentagon has the most?

“I think that the CIA and I think that the FFRDCs [Federally Funded Research & Development Centers] has (sic) the most information,” Burlison says. “And the private contractors.”

Share Ask a Pol UAP

Leave a comment

TRANSCRIPT: Rep. Eric Burlison (9-2-2026)

SCENE: Ahead of a congressional vote, Rep. Eric Burlison was flanked by VICE Media founder Shane Smith and a film crew as the congressman made his way to the US Capitol earlier this week.*

Share

*PSST: Luna also told us she met with Harris this week. No idea what’s in the works.

VICE Camera Operator: I’m just going to walk behind you.

Eric Burlison: That’s good.

Matt Laslo: I’m going to ruin your shot, bro. You have a good August?

Burlison: Yeah, well, I was busy.

Laslo: Yeah? Tis the season.

Burlison: Yeah.

Laslo: What’s up with these whispers about [UFO whistleblower David] Grusch maybe getting his NDA waived?

Burlison: It needs to get — well, they’ll waive it, but what he needs is his clearances all brought back, so...

Laslo: Are you talking with Stephen Miller and them about that?

Burlison: Yes. I’ve been tenacious about that.

Laslo: Do you think it’ll come?

Burlison: Because to me, if you don’t clear his record and demonstrate that you’re able to make him right, you’re sending a message to everybody else who might want to come forward that you’re going to get punished if you come forward.

Laslo: Yeah? Would that be the President himself giving him that waiver? Or what would that look like?

Burlison: Yeah. I mean, honestly, the administration and I’ve talked to them, they will readily admit that it was probably, they probably went too far with him.

Laslo: Interesting.

Burlison: Yeah.

Laslo: Who would admit that? FBI?

Burlison: I’m not going to say, because I, yeah, just out of a level of confidence.

Share

Laslo: Yeah? I hear that you guys are in regular talks now with this FBI unit on UFO?

Burlison: I’m having regular talks with all of these people.

Laslo: Do you trust any? Like, are you making headway with any?

Burlison: Um. I would — that is a very open-ended question.

Laslo: I know.

Burlison: We’re trying to make progress.

Laslo: So, like, are you also investigating, like Department of Energy or is this Pentagon-focused still?

Burlison: Yeah. I mean, the DOE [Department of Energy] is definitely part of this. They, I made sure that they did not exclude the DOE, because there’s just, there’s so much lore about them and their involvement.

Laslo: Yeah? Do you think that’s where it might be? Or do you still think the Pentagon has the most?

Burlison: I think that the CIA and I think that the FFRDCs* are where that has the most information and the private contractors.

*Federally Funded Research & Development Centers (FFRDC)

Subscribe now

Laslo: And you’re communicating that with Miller and them?

Burlison: Yeah.

Laslo: Game on.

Burlison: Game on. Thanks, Matt.

Laslo: Appreciate ya!

Burlison walks up the Capitol steps on his way to cast one of his last votes until after November’s elections now that House Speaker Mike Johnson canceled the remaining legislative days previously scheduled after Labor Day.

Laslo: Good to see ya.

Who?

Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (R-FL) — Chair, Task Force on the Declassification of Federal Secrets

LISTEN: Laslo & Luna

Ask a Pol asks:

What’s this chatter about whistleblower David Grusch maybe having his NDA waived?

Key Luna:

“Well, the White House can give that if they come in, and I think he’s already talking with them directly,” Rep. Anna Paulina Luna exclusively tells Ask a Pol UAP. “We want anyone who has information to be able to share that without facing retribution.”

And right now it has to be case by case?

“Yes. It’s not a blanket waiver, because then people can just make stuff up, right? But yeah, he’s definitely one of the ones that we’re considering,” Luna tells us. “And he’s also directly talking now with the White House.”

Caught our ear:

“Well, there’s a division that’s headed up by Stephen Miller that works with us and the Pentagon and AARO, so we’re all working together,” Luna said. “It doesn’t have a name per se, but I will show you the coin…”

You got a coin?

“It’s called SIG — Special Investigations Group,” Luna tells us. “That’s the division at the FBI that does investigations.”

Share Ask a Pol UAP

Huh. And how much have you guys been talking with them?

“We work directly with them for our investigation, so we’ve had several briefings,” Luna says. “We’re over there, you know, open lines of communication. It’s extensive.”

“The rollouts have been largely because of those meetings,” Luna exclusively tells Ask a Pol UAP.

Oh yeah?

Leave a comment

TRANSCRIPT: Rep. Anna Paulina Luna (9-1-2026)

SCENE: Ask a Pol’s Matt Laslo walks with Rep. Anna Paulina Luna and her aides from the US Capitol to her office across the street.

Matt Laslo: “What’s this chatter about [whistleblower David] Grusch maybe having his NDA waived?”

Anna Paulina Luna: “Well, the White House can give that if they come in, and I think he’s already talking with them directly.”

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Luna: “And so we want anyone who has information to be able to share that without facing retribution.”

Laslo: “And right now it has to be case by case?”

Luna: “Yeah. It’s not a blanket waiver, because then people can just make stuff up, right? But yeah, he’s definitely one of the ones that we’re considering.”

Laslo: “And…?”

Luna: “And he’s also directly talking now with the White House.”

Laslo: “Oh, interesting. Is that about where to look?”

Luna: “Say again?”

Laslo: “Is that like him telling the White House where to look?”

Luna: “Well, there’s a division that’s headed up by Stephen Miller that works with us and the Pentagon and AARO.”

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Luna: “So we’re all working together.”

Laslo: “What’s that division called?”

Luna: “Well, it’s, I guess your informal UAP task force that’s within the White House. So it doesn’t have a name per se. But I will show you the coin. Hold on.”

Laslo: “You have a coin?”

Luna: “No, I have — you’re actually going to be one of the first journalists to see it. I showed it to VICE earlier. It’s called SIG — Special Investigations Group. That’s the division at the FBI that does investigations.”

Laslo: “Huh. And how much have you guys been talking with them?”

Luna: “We work directly with them for our investigation, so we’ve had several briefings. We’re over there, you know, open lines of communication. It’s extensive.”

Laslo: “When does the public get let in? Because like AARO…”

Luna: “The rollouts have been largely because of those meetings.”

Laslo: “Oh yeah?”

Luna: “But specifically for the other stuff that’s going to be something that’s more or less framed around — I’m going to go outside this side one [door] — framed around if we can locate said materials, etc. I mean, this is — we’re… People are saying that they know, so we’re, you know, we’re following up on it.”

Laslo: “And is the FBI kind of talking to the Pentagon?”

Luna: “We’re all in this together — we’re all working together.”

Laslo: “Interesting.”

Luna: “Yeah.”

Laslo: “Do you think we’ll have another hearing after the election or start of next year or…?”

Luna: “Well, the [Secrets] Task Force is not permanent, but it does help having people at the White House that are actually assisting. There’s also potentially a joint effort that’s going to take place specifically on investigating this stuff between two countries, but that’s going to be further discussed later on down the line.”

Laslo: “Interesting.”

Luna: “So, thank you.”

What should we ask Congress next?

Join Matt Laslo’s subscriber chat

Available in the Substack app and on web

Who?

Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY)

LISTEN: Laslo & Gillibrand

Ask a Pol asks:

When’s the last time you talked to AARO — the Pentagon’s All-Domain Anomaly Resolution Office?

Key Gillibrand:

“Supposed to have another briefing,” Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand exclusively tells Ask a Pol UAP. “And they’re supposed to give us an update. I don’t know when it’s on the schedule, though. I would have thought I would have had it.”

HELP!!!! We broke. Literally.

Support us with a Subscription!

Subscribe now

We’re on Venmo, PayPal, Cash App — or just buy the team a beer!

Caught our ear:

Ask a Pol UAP informs Gillibrand that Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer’s UAP Disclosure Act — which she’s been a sponsor of in previous years — was included in the House NDAA for the first time.

“Good,” Gillibrand tells us. “Wait — is it not in our version?”

ICYMI — 2nd Senator to learn UAPDA’s fate from Ask a Pol

Let us know what to ask next!

TRANSCRIPT: Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (8-7-2026)

SCENE: Ask a Pol’s Matt Laslo peeks his head outside of the Capitol to see if any Senators are getting dropped off at the historic Carriage Entrance.

Within seconds, the first people he runs into are Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand and an aide. Gillibrand stops right in front of the Capitol’s entrance, so they end up blocking some senatorial foot traffic...

Share

Matt Laslo: “When’s the last time you talked to AARO?”

Kirsten Gillibrand: “Supposed to have another briefing.”

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Gillibrand: “And they’re supposed to give us an update. I don’t know when — it’s on the schedule, though. I would have thought I would have had it.”

Gillibrand’s schedule — nothing public yet*

Share

Laslo: “Kind of updating you now that they’ve released the four tranches of [UFO] files?”

Gillibrand: “And now that you have a new [AARO] head.”

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Gillibrand: “And just to hear what they’ve seen, you know, what they’ve seen, what they found.”

Laslo: “Do you — did you know that Schumer’s UAP Disclosure Act was included in the House NDAA for the first time?”

Gillibrand: “Oh, no. Good.”

Laslo: “Congressman Burlison...”

Gillibrand: “Wait — is it not in our version?”

Laslo: “I don’t believe so.”

Gillibrand: “I’ll look into it.”

Laslo: “But [Senator Mike] Rounds was telling me the problem’s always been with the House...”

Sen. Tim Sheehy and an aide are about to enter the US Capitol when Gillibrand stops Sheehy to discuss a bipartisan measure they’re collaborating on.

Subscribe now

Who?

Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD) — Original sponsor, UAP Disclosure Act

LISTEN: Laslo & Rounds

Ask a Pol asks:

Did you hear Rep. Eric Burlison got your UAP Disclosure Act with Sen. Chuck Schumer included in the NDAA — National Defense Authorization Act — over in the House of Representatives?

Key Rounds:

“No, I hadn’t heard that,” Sen. Mike Rounds exclusively tells Ask a Pol UAP — before adding, “Well, if it is, it’s old news.”*

*ICYMI — Senate Dems are blocking NDAA over Iran

Welp. Consider a paid subscription ASAP!

Subscribe now

Ask a Pol’s on Venmo, PayPal, Cash App…

…or just buy the team a beer!

Caught our ear:

Have you looked at any of the newly declassified “UFO files” the Pentagon’s been releasing yet?

“We’ve been busy on other stuff,” Rounds tells us. “No.”

Leave a comment

TRANSCRIPT: Sen. Mike Rounds (8-6-2026)

SCENE: Ask a Pol founder Matt Laslo recorded Sen. Mike Rounds updating reporters on a host of issues — from government funding to a stalled crypto measure — but Laslo left the scrum early when the staffer’s aides boarded a Senators Only elevator.

Laslo slips onto a different elevator and rushes to the 2nd floor of the US Capitol, just off the Senate floor. When the Senator and his aides finally arrive, Laslo’s waiting outside their elevator.

Mike Rounds: “Hey, you’re quick!”

Rounds laughs.

Matt Laslo: “Did you hear [Rep. Eric] Burlison got your UAP Disclosure Act with [Senate minority Leader Chuck] Schumer included in the NDAA over there [in the US House]?”

Rounds: “No, I hadn’t heard that.”

ICYMI — Burlison’s announcement (July 22, 2026)

Share

Laslo: “You hadn’t?”

Rounds: “Well, if it is, it’s old news.”

Laslo: “Oh yeah? But with the NDAA do you think you guys would be able to keep that in?”

Rounds: “I hope so. I hope so. I think we’ve done everything we can to keep it in the right, you know, with the right approach. And once again, I’m just concerned that we do this in such a fashion that we don’t release anything which would be considered to be any breach of security in terms of the other projects that we work on regularly.”

Laslo: “Have you talked to AARO at all — those folks — since the Pentagon started releasing stuff?”

Rounds: “No, I have not.”

Laslo: “No?”

Rounds: “I have not.”

Laslo: “Have you looked at the UFO files yet?”

Rounds: “We’ve been busy on other stuff.”

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Laslo: “Have you looked at what the Pentagon’s been releasing?”

Rounds: “No.”

Laslo: “No?”

Another congressional reporter steps in.

Other Reporter: “Senator, has there been any movement on…”

Share Ask a Pol UAP

Who?

Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT) — Ranking Member, House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence (HPSCI)

LISTEN: Laslo & Himes

Ask a Pol asks:

Have you looked at any of these UFO files the Pentagon’s been dropping?

Key Himes:

“I think I’ve looked at what I understand to be almost all of the compartments that, you know, are relevant, but I’m not current on what the [Defense] Department has been doing lately,” Rep. Jim Himes — the top Democrat on HPSCI — exclusively tells Ask a Pol Politics.

They’ve released four batches of recently declassified UFO videos and documentation that are new to the rest of us. But that hasn’t really gotten on your radar?”

“Not really,” Himes says. “I haven’t been tracking it, but I’ll take a look.”

UAPDA — UAP Disclosure Act marches on (for now…)

Have you heard about Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s UAP Disclosure Act getting included in the House-passed version of the NDAA?

“Yeah, no, I can’t remember,” Himes replies. “I’ll take your word for it.”

But the UAPDA didn’t come up in NDAA talks in HPSCI?

“Didn’t come up in Intelligence, no,” Himes says. “We were really focused on the IAA [Intelligence Authorization Act].”

Share Ask a Pol UAP

Caught our ear:

“Uh, oh,” Himes quips to Laslo. “I thought I was gonna get out of here without some question about UFOs or whatever, psilocybin.”

ICYMI — Find Ask a Pol on YouTube, TikTok or Instagram!

Leave a comment

TRANSCRIPT: Rep. Jim Himes (7-23-2026)

SCENE: Ask a Pol founder Matt Laslo catches Rep. Jim Himes as he’s walking from the US Capitol to his office across the street.

Matt Laslo: “Mr. Himes.”

Jim Himes: “Uh, oh — I thought I was gonna get out of here without some question about UFOs or whatever, psilocybin.”

Laslo: “Watch out now, I’m going to put you on video.”

*GRRR — Laslo’s phone was out of storage the last day the House of Representatives was in session until September. We’re still not over it. First and last time that happens.

Laslo: “Have you looked at any of these files? The ‘UFO files’ that the Pentagon’s been dropping?”

Himes: “I think I’ve looked at what I understand to be almost all of the compartments that, you know, are relevant, but I’m, I’m not current on what the department has been doing lately.”

Laslo: “They’ve released like four batches of videos, some that are new — well, new to the rest of us, I guess, a lot of them are declassified, but that hasn’t really gotten on your radar?”

Himes: “Not really. I haven’t been tracking it, but I’ll take a look.”

Laslo: “Have you heard about the UAP Disclosure Act? I guess it got included in the NDAA here.”

Congressman Himes gets a message on his phone.

Himes: “Sorry.”

The Congressman answers a text from an aide before slipping his phone into his pocket.

Himes: “Yeah, no, I can’t, I can’t remember.”

Laslo: “Yeah? It wasn’t really debated.”

Himes: “I’ll take your word, I’ll take your word for it.”

Laslo: “But I guess — but it didn’t come up?”

Himes: “Didn’t come up in Intelligence, no. We were, we were really focused on the IAA.”

Share

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Himes: “Which we’ll hopefully tag on to the NDAA.”

Laslo: “What’s that?”

Himes: “What’s that?”

Laslo: “What’s the IAA?”

Himes: “The Intelligence Authorization Act.”

Laslo: “Oh, that’s right. That’s right.”

Himes: “Yeah.”

Laslo: “The one I’m never allowed to hear about.”

Himes: “No, no, you can you can see. You can’t see the classified annex.”

They laugh.

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Himes: “Sorry about that.”

Laslo: “I can’t see the fun stuff!”

Himes: “But you can see most of it.”

Laslo: “Hey, have a good August.”

Himes: “Alright, take care — you too.”

Laslo passes some Capitol Police officers.

Laslo: “Have a good one, man.”

A Congresswoman waves to Laslo from the passenger seat of her aide’s car.

Laslo: “Have a good August.”

Laslo crosses the street back to the Capitol.

Who?

Rep. Tim Burchett (R-TN) — Co-chair, Congressional UAP Caucus; Oversight

LISTEN: Laslo Burchett

Ask a Pol asks

How much are you guys talking with White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller these days?

Key Burchett

“Regularly, yeah,” Burchett exclusively tells Ask a Pol UAP. “He’s running into problems, though. The “deep state” is blocking a lot of this stuff that the President’s trying to get to.”

Subscribe now

ICYMI — Now you get why we hounded Stephen Miller?

Caught our ear:

How does the Congressional UAP Caucus get past these secretive “deep state” blockers?

“Well, there’s some legislation that moved on some whistleblower stuff that was in one of the bills so, I hope maybe that’ll help clear up a lot of it,” Burchett tells us. “But it’s a fistfight. It’s been that way since 1947, and we’re not going to do it overnight.”

Leave a comment

TRANSCRIPT: Rep. Tim Burchett (7-23-2026)

SCENE: After members of the US House of Representatives cast their last votes Thursday — the last votes the chamber is scheduled to take until September! — chaos descended on the Capitol steps.

Aides sat idling in cars as many confused lawmakers were heard on their cells trying to figure out where their taxpayer-funded chauffeurs were so they could rush to the closest airport.

All the while, the congressional press corps frantically chased lawmakers as they locked in the final interviews they need for their annual August recess features that need to hold as smart, forward-looking pieces despite Congress being MIA.

Share Ask a Pol UAP

Matt Laslo: “How much are you guys talking with [White House Deputy Chief of Staff] Stephen Miller these days?”

Tim Burchett: “Regularly, yeah. He’s running into problems, though. The “deep state” blocking a lot of this stuff that the President’s trying to get to.”

Laslo: “How do you get past that?”

Burchett: “Well, there’s some legislation that moved on some whistleblower stuff that was in one of the bills…”

ICYMI — The US House passed the “Expanding Whistleblower Protections for Contractors Act” this July

Burchett: “…so, I hope maybe that’ll help clear up a lot of it. But it’s a fistfight. It’s been that way since 1947, and we’re not going to do it overnight.”

Laslo: “Does he now get [President Donald] Trump at the table a little bit more in these talks?”

Burchett: “Oh, he’s in it. He’s in it, but he’s the one that’s being denied. I mean, the “deep state” is real and it crosses party lines, and it’s crooked as a dog’s leg.”

Burchett and his small entourage of aides hop in his staffer’s awaiting SUV, as they rush the Congressman out of town for Members’ annual summer vacation.

Who?

Stephen Miller — White House Deputy Chief of Staff for policy and Homeland Security Advisor

WATCH: Laslo & Miller (short)

SCENE:

Ask a Pol founder Matt Laslo bumped into White House Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller — along with his wife, children and large Secret Service detail — at the US Capitol this week.

Subscribe now

Ask a Pol asks:

How’s UAP disclosure going?

Key Miller:

“Hmm,” Miller smirks.

WATCH: Full video*

*of note, especially to aspiring journalists: the herd of congressional reporters and photographers stay grouped together, but Laslo positions himself between Miller and the Capitol entrance. While we didn’t get an answer, Ask a Pol was the only outlet to get a question in.

Share Ask a Pol UAP

Who?

Rep. Eric Burlison (R-MO) — Oversight & Government Reform Committee; Task Force on the Declassification of Federal Secrets

LISTEN: Laslo & Burlison

Ask a Pol asks:

Are you worried the Senate is going to try to strip the UAP Disclosure Act out of the House-passed National Defense Authorization Act [NDAA]?

Key Burlison:

“I am,” Rep. Eric Burlison exclusively tells Ask a Pol UAP. “The public has to fight to keep it in.”

Subscribe now

ICYMI — Find Ask a Pol on YouTube, TikTok or Instagram!

Share

Caught our ear:

“Diligence,” Burlison tells us. “Diligence, and like absolute relentlessness.”

Leave a comment

TRANSCRIPT: Rep. Eric Burlison (7-23-2026)

SCENE: After a quick interview with TMZ, Rep. Eric Burlison’s rushing up the US Capitol steps to cast his last votes before the US House left Washington for its monthslong summer recess.

While Burlison asks to do the interview later,* Ask a Pol’s Matt Laslo peppers the second-term Congressman with some quick questions on how he got the UAP Disclosure Act included in the House-passed National Defense Authorization Act or NDAA.

*PHEW: Laslo didn’t see Burlison in hectic start of summer for the US House of Representatives after the vote series.

Eric Burlison: “I have to go vote. I don’t want to miss this.”

TMZ: “Okay, go go vote. Go vote. Thank you, sir.”

Matt Laslo: “Wait, real quick. You got the UAPDA…?”

Eric Burlison: “Can I talk on the way back?”

Matt Laslo: “But you got the UAPDA…?”

Eric Burlison: “I know.”

Matt Laslo: “…in there?”

Eric Burlison: “High five.”

Laslo awkwardly laughs and waves his notepad at Burlison’s hand.

Matt Laslo: “How’d you do that?”

Eric Burlison: “Diligence. Diligence, and like absolute relentlessness.”

Matt Laslo: “Yeah?”

Eric Burlison: “And so, it’s a longer story. I’ll tell you later.”

Matt Laslo: “Are you worried the Senate’s going to try to strip it out?”

Eric Burlison: “I am. They — the public has to fight to keep it in.”

Share

Matt Laslo: “Yeah?”

Who?

Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY) — Senate Minority Leader; original co-sponsor, UAP Disclosure Act

LISTEN: Laslo & Schumer

Ask a Pol asks:

Have you been able to check out any of these Pentagon UFO files?

Key Schumer:

“Not yet, no,” Sen. Chuck Schumer exclusively tells Ask a Pol UAP.

Subscribe now

ICYMI — Find Ask a Pol on YouTube, TikTok or Instagram!

Caught our ear:

Are we going to see your UAP Disclosure Act?

“Hope so,” Schumer tells Ask a Pol founder Matt Laslo.

Leave a comment

TRANSCRIPT: Sen. Chuck Schumer (7-15-2026)

SCENE: An elevator opens on the first floor of the US Capitol and Ask a Pol founder Matt Laslo sees it’s packed with uniformed Capitol Police, a photographer, comms aides and Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer.

Laslo apologizes and says, “How are you Mr. Leader?” as he scrambles to call another elevator. When Laslo gets to the basement of the Capitol, he quietly rushes to catch up with Schumer, an original co-sponsor of the UAP Disclosure Act.

Matt Laslo: “Have you been able to check out any of these Pentagon UFO files?”

Sen. Chuck Schumer: “Not yet, no.”

Laslo: “Are we going to see your UAP Disclosure Act?”

Schumer: “Hope so.”

Laslo: “‘Hope so?’”

Schumer nods as his entourage heads towards the Senate Recording Studio — a bipartisan underground studio outfitted with green screens and the latest video cameras, professional lighting and studio-grade microphones.

Schumer: “Thank you, sir.”

Share Ask a Pol UAP

AI Disclosure:
Ask a Pol’s playing around with as many new AI tools as we can, so this small, unfunded startup can compete in today’s new media landscape. (generative) AI isn’t tomorrow’s tech — it’s yesterday’s…

Who?

Sen. Mark Kelly (D-AZ) — fmr. NASA astronaut, US Navy combat pilot

LISTEN: Laslo & Kelly

PSA:

Congress is out; interview predates 4th UFO file dump

Subscribe now

ICYMI — MSM, international & off-beaten-trail UFO coverage

Share

Ask a Pol asks:

Have you looked at any of the newly declassified UFO files videos the Pentagon’s been disclosing this summer?

Key Kelly:

“I had my staff print out all the UFO files,” Sen. Mark Kelly exclusively told Ask a Pol UAP. “We have them in binders, so people can look through them. There’s some interesting stuff in there: Drawings of aliens.”

Laslo laughs.

Is there anything that’s moving your staff or you?

“On this?” Kelly said. “No.”

Caught our ear:

“It’d be good if we had more information,” Kelly told us.

Leave a comment

TRANSCRIPT: Sen. Mark Kelly (6-10-2026)

SCENE: Ask a Pol founder Matt Laslo catches Sen. Mark Kelly — a former NASA astronaut and Navy combat pilot — at the Capitol in June ahead of Congress’s two-week July Fourth recess.

Find Ask a Pol on YouTube, TikTok or Instagram.

Matt Laslo: “You looked at any of these videos — the UFO disclosure stuff?”

Sen. Mark Kelly: “I had my staff print out all the UFO files.”

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Kelly: “We have them in binders, so people can look through them. There’s some interesting stuff in there: Drawings of aliens.”

Laslo laughs.

Laslo “Is there anything that’s moving your staff or you?”

Kelly: “On this?”

Laslo: “No?”

Kelly: “No.”

Laslo: “No?”

Kelly: “No.”

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Kelly: “But, you know, I’ve been in meetings about this.”

Laslo: “Yeah.”

Kelly: “The only compelling thing I’ve ever seen — and you can go online and find the 60 Minutes interview with the guy who’s the squadron F-18 squadron commander…”

Subscribe now

Laslo: “Yeah, yeah.”

Kelly: “…and the wingman. That is hard to explain.”

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Kelly: “And I just don’t — I mean, it’d be good if we had more information.”

Laslo: “Yeah? Do you think it’s adversaries with advanced tech?”

Kelly: “I have no idea. No idea. I’ll tell you what, he doesn’t think it is.”

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Kelly: “Cause I’ve talked to that guy a couple times.”

Laslo: “Oh, yeah?”

Kelly: “And he thinks it’s somewhere else.”

Kelly enters a room.

Laslo: “Have a good one, sir.”

Share

What should we ask Congress next?

Ask a Pol AI Disclosure:
Ask a Pol’s playing around with as many new AI tools as we can, so this small, unfunded startup can compete in today’s new media landscape. (generative) AI isn’t tomorrow’s tech — it’s yesterday’s…

WASHINGTON — Once again, Congress is on vacation. Enjoy.

1. New UFO Videos Released By the Pentagon, Fourth Batch of Files — TMZ (via Yahoo)*

   *fascinated-to-terrified that TMZ was first to pop up in Duck Duck Go search - Prof. Laslo

2. Are Aliens Real? NASA Chief Confirms Secret Photos of Unexplained Objects — International Business Times

3. Declassified intelligence map reveals where America’s largest UFO waves unfolded — Daily Mail

   Let us know what you’d ask Congress.

   We’re on it when they return next week!

4. Inside the Pentagon’s newly released UFO files—here is what was hiding in the 4th data dump — Breaking Now News*

   *know them? - Prof. Laslo

5. Pentagon releases new set of UFO files: “Unlike anything I had seen” — CBS

   1. BONUS: Astrophysicist Avi Loeb on Pentagon’s 4th UFO files release

   

6. Declassified ‘green fireball’ records raise questions about 1949 sightings — Newsweek

7. Haunting video of six-pointed object in latest Trump UFO file dump — as proof of alien life remains elusive — New York Post

8. UFO Disclosure 2026: Fourth Batch Of 40 Files Released By Department Of War; Here’s How To Download — Mashable India*

   *Mashable India!?! Is there still a Mashable? - Prof. Laslo

9. The Bay Area UFO….aliens — The Press Democrat

   

   Don’t even think about subscribing to them if you don’t rep us!

10. Trump’s bombshell UFO files expose creepy 8-point object that breached airspace — AOL

11. Pentagon Releases 4th Batch Of Declassified UFO Files, Including 19 Videos And A 1949 Conference About Green Fireballs — BroBible*

    *anyone ever read this? - Prof. Laslo

12. New videos released from declassified UFO files — KGW

13. ‘Unlike anything I had seen’: Pentagon drops new UFO videos and military reports — Mathrubhumi

14. 🎥 Pentagon releases 4rd batch of UFO files — Hays Post

15. Mysterious ‘green fireballs,’ Space Shuttle photos among newly released UFO files — KRCR (Sinclair)

    ICYMI — What’s this?*

    *stumbled on this so now have to watch it, in a bit. Seen it? Thoughts?

16. New Trump UFO file dump includes military footage of mysterious star-shaped object — Fox ‘News’ (via AOL)

    1. BONUS I: NASA chief confirms agency has unexplained UFO imagery: ‘We don’t know what it is’

    2. BONUS II (en español): La nueva filtración de archivos sobre ovnis de Trump incluye imágenes militares de un misterioso objeto con forma de estrella

17. Haunting star-shaped UFO spotted over Asia unclassified docs reveal — The Daily Telegraph

18. UFO files: Dr. Phil scolds gov’t for not getting real about alien craft — NewsNation

19. DOD Releases Fourth Tranche of Declassified UAP Files — MeriTalk

    *Huh. Ever hear of them? Guess they’re Alexandria, Virginia based. I used to be local DC reporter (WAMU), and I’ve never heard of em. - Prof. Laslo

    Subscribe now

20. BREAKING: Star figure spotted near U.S. base revealed in Pentagon’s latest UFO FILE drop | RISING — The Hill

21. PENTAGON RELEASES NEW BATCH OF UAP VIDEOS AND HISTORICAL FILES, BUT CLARITY REMAINS ELUSIVE — The Debrief

22. NASA Boss Says Agency Has Captured UFO Images It Cannot Explain — 2OceansVibe (South Africa)

23. NASA boss admits agency has captured images of UFOs saying ‘we don’t know what it is’ — LADbible (Britain)

24. Pentagon releases new UFO files — USA Today

    VETTED’s take…

25. New videos from declassified UFO files — KXTV (Sacramento)

26. Pentagon releases new trove of eerie UFO files — ABC

27. New Pentagon UFO files show mysterious object spotted near Texas nuclear weapons plant — Interesting Engineering

28. Pentagon releases fourth batch of UFO files, includes video footage — Just the News

29. ‘Time the Americans see’: Declassified UFO files reveal mystery craft hovering over US nuclear base — Economic Times

30. Pentagon releases more declassified UFO files — Newsmax

31. Trump’s bombshell UFO files expose creepy 8-point object that breached airspace — Daily Express US

32. Pentagon Releases Fourth Batch of UFO Files — Verity*

    *anyone ever heard of them before? - Prof. Laslo

    Subscribe now

33. NEW: Pentagon Releases 4th Tranche of UFO Files – Military Personnel Describe UFO as “Unlike Anything I Had Seen” in 28 years of Service (VIDEOS) — Gateway Pundit

34. War Dept. Unveils 4th UFO Files on WAR.GOV/UFO — Mirage.News

35. WTF (- Prof. Laslo): Tuttle Capital UFO Disclosure ETF (UFOD) — Stock Analysis*

    *again, WTF!?! Know about this and didn’t tell me!??!? - Prof. Laslo (also, WTF)

36. U.S. Releases New Batch of Declassified UFO Files — RKS News (Russia)

37. Did NASA just admit UFOs are real? Chief Isaacman says agency has ‘captured imageries…’ — The Economic Times

38. Department of War Publishes Fourth Release of Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena Files on WAR.GOV/UFO — Defcon Level

39. US releases new batch of declassified UFO files: Fourth release under Trump administration’s UAP disclosure program includes additional historical records, Pentagon says — US Muslims*

    *”This news has been read 61 times in total,” reads bottom of post at 10:39pm EST Friday, July, 10, 2026.

Share

BONUS, BONUS:

*clicking I do not agree to terms sends you to…

Well played.

— Prof. Laslo

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY) — Member, Energy & Commerce Committee

LISTEN: Laslo & AOC I

Ask a Pol asks:

Have you had time to look at any of these three batches of UFO or UAP files the Pentagon’s been dropping? Or is the topic less interesting to you now?

Key AOC:

“No, it’s not that. It’s that I’m not on the committee of jurisdiction. I’ve moved off of Oversight,” Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez exclusively tells Ask a Pol UAP. “When you’re not on the committee of jurisdiction, they don’t tell us when these things go out.”

Subscribe now

Caught our ear:

“If you try to see these for yourself, they give you a hard time,” AOC tells us. “They’re like, ‘why do you want to see this?’”

Share

ICYMI — Find Ask a Pol on YouTube, TikTok or Reels!

BONUS: AOC II — from June 2nd*

“It reminds me when they first released the Epstein files, and they were just like binders with nothing in them,” AOC told Ask a Pol UAP in a separate exchange on June 2, 2026 right after the Pentagon dropped the first batch of UFO files.

*pardon the delay; the Senate Radio-TV Gallery Correspondents’ Association is still blocking Laslo from credentialing the Ask a Pol team, so he doesn’t have any help at the moment.

Leave a comment

TRANSCRIPT:

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (6-25-2026)

SCENE: Ask a Pol founder Matt Laslo catches Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez as she’s walking from the US Capitol to her office across the street just ahead of Congress’ two week Fourth of July recess.

Matt Laslo: “Have you had time to look at these UFO or UAP files?”

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: “I have to. Are they in the SCIF?”

Laslo: “No, they’ve just been dropping ‘em.”

AOC: “I shouldn’t be asking you this. I should know.”

Laslo: “Pentagon dropped three different batches of ’em. Is it less interesting to you now?”

AOC: “No, it’s not that. It’s that I’m not on the committee of jurisdiction.”

Laslo: “Yeah.”

AOC: “I’ve moved off of Oversight. So what also happens is that they don’t — when you’re not on the committee of jurisdiction, they don’t tell us when these things go out.”

Laslo laughs.

AOC: “And if you’re not on the committee of jurisdiction when you try to see them for yourself, they give you a hard time. They’re like, ‘why do you want to see this?’”

Laslo: “That’s a decent excuse.”

AOC cracks up.

Laslo: “Have a good one.”

Subscribe now

TRANSCRIPT II: Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (6-2-2026)

SCENE: In a shorter exchange weeks earlier, Laslo asks AOC for her take on the substance of the Pentagon’s UAP disclosures — and she draws an unexpected comparison.

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez: “It reminds me when they first released the Epstein files, and they were just like binders with nothing in them.”

Matt Laslo: “Right?”

RAW AUDIO:

Share

What should we ask Congress next?

Ask a Pol AI Disclosure:
Ask a Pol’s playing around with as many new AI tools as we can, so this small, unfunded startup can compete in today’s new media landscape. (generative) AI isn’t tomorrow’s tech — it’s yesterday’s…

WASHINGTON — The mainstream media has been transfixed on the sparse attendance at President Donald Trump’s Great American State Fair on the National Mall* this week, but the bigger story is the untold tens of millions of dollars corporations ponied up to get a seat at the head table.

*Laslo included (see: “Scorching heat and empty baptism pools: Inside Trump’s deserted American State Fair”) as he covers what his wire service, The LCB, clients want him to…

Everywhere you look at the event that stretches some 10 city blocks along the National Mall, you see a corporate logo.

It’s America, so what?

What particularly caught our eye are all the aerospace companies paying large (if mostly undisclosed) sums of money to show their support for the President as contractors jockey for a limited number of federal space contracts.

Of course, there are all the usual suspects, including Lockheed Martin, Northrop Grumman and GE Aerospace.

Subscribe now

But there are also new money millionaires — and “trillionaire,” on paper at least… — showcasing their aerospace acumen throughout the 16-day long event.

Of course, there’s Elon Musk’s SpaceX. But sponsors also include other next-gen space companies, like commercial space station construction company Axiom Space or artificial intelligence-fueled aerospace manufacturing consultants SAP.

At the very least, space seems to be en vogue in the nation’s capital these days, especially at the Department of War’s busy exhibit.

Share

Of course, the military-industrial complex is selling the President — and the nation through him — on more than just aerospace, like the Army’s new AI-powered robotic dog, fighter jets, B-2 bombers, real K-9 soldiers, more fighter jets, next-gen aircraft carriers, etc.

While there are lots of innovative bells and amazing American whistles on display, just underneath the surface there’s a dangerous commingling of the billionaire and political classes.

As friend of Ask a Pol, NOTUS editor Dave Levinthal, wrote this week:

“During a three-hour fairgrounds tour, NOTUS spotted the presence of dozens of corporations and special interest groups representing a who’s who of influence peddlers, many with serious money behind their lobbying efforts.

“These companies and organizations collectively spent more than $152 million in 2025 on formal efforts to lobby the U.S. federal government, according to a NOTUS analysis of federal lobbying disclosure records and data compiled by nonpartisan research organization OpenSecrets.

“Their executives and political action committees have meanwhile donated many millions of dollars more this decade to political candidates’ campaigns, national party committees and super PACs…”

BONUS: Cool documentary alert!*

*gets a tad Reality TV for me — needless drama heaped on actual drama — but overall it’s an intimate look inside America’s elite Thunderbird program.

Like, did you know pilot’s are only in the elite squadron two years and each year half the team is replaced? So each year, half the squadron are freshmen.

- Prof Laslo

Share

Who?

Rep. James Comer (R-KY) — Chair, House Oversight Committee

LISTEN: Laslo & Comer

Ask a Pol asks:

In the wake of the Pentagon declassifying all these “UFO files,” is there any plan for another UFO hearing?

Key Comer:

“I would like to have another — what I call UFO, you all call something else — hearing. I need to talk to them* about it,” House Oversight Chair James Comer exclusively tells Ask a Pol UAP. “It’s hard to plan hearings when you don’t know when we’re going to be here and when we’re not, you know?”**

*Secrets Task Force, ie Congressional UAP Caucus

**it’s an election year, so congressional schedule in flux.

Subscribe now

Share

Caught our ear:

“I think that would be popular,” Comer tells us.

Leave a comment

TRANSCRIPT: Rep. James Comer (6-25-2026)

SCENE: After a vote on the House floor, Ask a Pol founder Matt Laslo catches House Oversight Committee Chair James Comer as he’s heading back to his office across the street from the Capitol.

Matt Laslo: “Have you caught any of these Pentagon releases on UFO files / UAP?”

James Comer: “I do, I read whatever’s written, but like I said before, [Chair Anna Paulina] Luna and [Tim] Burchett and [Eric] Burlison are the ones that represent the [Oversight] Committee on all that.”

Laslo: “Do you think — so there’s no plan for another hearing?”

Comer: “You know, I would like to have another hearing. I need to talk to them about it. It’s hard to plan hearings when you don’t know when we’re going to be here and when we’re not, you know?”

Laslo: “Yeah.”

Comer: “But I would like to have another — what I call UFO, you all call something else — hearing.”

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Comer: “Yeah, I think that would be popular.”

Laslo: “And especially after the release of these new files?”

Comer: “Since we’ve got stuff to talk about now.”

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Comer: “Yeah.”

Laslo: “Interesting. I’ll be watching.”

Comer: “Okay.”

Laslo: “Last question, cause they were initially only a select committee* for like six months, then they got the extension. How did you guys extend them again? Are they, like, extended indefinitely?”

*task force

Comer: “What, the [Secrets] Task Force?”

Laslo: “The UFO Caucus — yeah, Task Force.”

Comer: “Yeah, I just extended it. I don’t know — I don’t know that one’s ever been extended, but we were allowed to do it, we feel like, and we did it.”

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Comer: “It’s good. I mean, we’re getting stuff, you know?”

Laslo: “Yeah.”

Comer: “It’s actually doing its job. That never happens.”

Laslo: “Right? There you go.”

Comer: “Yeah.”

Share Ask a Pol UAP

What should we ask Congress next?

Ask a Pol AI Disclosure:
Ask a Pol’s playing around with as many new AI tools as we can, so this small, unfunded startup can compete in today’s new media landscape. (generative) AI isn’t tomorrow’s tech — it’s yesterday’s…

Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD) — lead sponsor, UAP Disclosure Act

LISTEN: Laslo & Rounds

Ask a Pol asks:

Any timeline — or blueprint for passage — for your UAP Disclosure Act with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer this year?

Key Rounds:

“Well, we’re going to introduce it. Put it as an amendment on the NDAA [National Defense Authorization Act]. Hopefully, the Senate will agree with us to do so. And if that’s the case, then the next step is going with the House and seeing if they would agree to some format of it,” Sen. Mike Rounds exclusively tells Ask a Pol UAP. “I presume they’ll have concerns like they did last time.”

“Yeah?”

“Hopefully, we’ll be able to allay some of those concerns or work through those concerns,” Rounds says.

“So you’re convinced the concerns are with the House?” Ask a Pol founder Matt Laslo pushes. “I still haven’t been able to find the voice of opposition.”

“Well, this is one way to find out — offer it again and then find out who will object to it,” Rounds says. “And it’ll be interesting to see whether or not the House has any provisions along the same line as our proposal, and if there is, then we’ll have a stronger case for putting it in the final version.”

Subscribe now

Special Access Programs I

Have you all still been looking for or found where these SAPs — Special Access Programs — are that whistleblower David Grusch alleges are hidden from Congress?

“It’s not so much that it’s hidden, it’s just a matter of the silos do exist,” Rounds says. “You may have the folks who are members of the armed services who might not know what the IC — the intelligence community — is actually doing.”

Special Access Programs II

We’ve been seeing the Pentagon release formerly classified UFO files but nothing from the Department of Energy or contractors, does the White House even know where to look?

“I can’t tell you why. Just that is the executive branch. And we’re getting more than we ever did before,” Rounds says. “So, step in the right direction. And maybe as they gain more confidence that the American public really want to see it, maybe we’ll see more of it in the future.”

Share

Caught our ear:

“It kind of represents the curiosity that’s natural for Americans. When we see something and we’ve got a curiosity, we want to get it satisfied. And that’s neat,” Rounds tells us of the growing interest in UFOs both inside and outside of Congress.

Leave a comment

TRANSCRIPT: Sen. Mike Rounds (6-25-2026)

SCENE: After Sen. Mike Rounds addressed this week’s UAP disclosure forum at the US Capitol, he poses for some selfies and does an interview in the hall outside the event with NewsNation’s Ross Coulthart.

Share Ask a Pol UAP

As always, Ask a Pol founder Matt Laslo waited in the wings before proceeding to catch an elevator for the Senator and two of his aides before escorting them back to the Senator’s office.

Matt Laslo: “Did you reveal all the secrets in there?”

Sen. Mike Rounds: “Everything I knew, which is not much.”

Laslo: “What do you make of it?”

Rounds: “What?”

Laslo: “The issue — and now it’s growing and it’s an item of interest.”

Rounds: “Yeah. And I mean, it kind of represents the curiosity that’s natural for Americans. When we see something and we’ve got a curiosity, we want to get it satisfied. And that’s neat.”

Laslo: “And when your airspace is shut down over New Jersey and — [laughter] — Langley [AFB] and stuff like that.”

Rounds: “There’s lots of new technologies out there, as you are aware.”

Laslo: “Are we going to see the UAP Disclosure Act — your bill with [Senate Minority Leader Chuck] Schumer — this year?”

Rounds: “Well, we’re going to introduce it. Put it as an amendment on the NDAA [National Defense Authorization Act]. Hopefully, the Senate will agree with us to do so. And if that’s the case, then the next step is going with the House and seeing if they would agree to some format of it. I presume they’ll have concerns like they did last time.”

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Rounds: “Hopefully, we’ll be able to alleviate some of those concerns or work through those concerns.”

Laslo: “So you’re convinced the concerns are with the House? I still haven’t been able to find the voice of opposition.”

Rounds: “Well, this is one way to find out — offer it again and then find out who will object to it. And it’ll be interesting to see whether or not the House has any provisions along the same line as our proposal, and if there is, then we’ll have a stronger case for putting it in the final version.”

Laslo: “Now, has your office heard from new whistleblowers? Or has the Intel [Committee] heard from any more whistleblowers — since we’ve had “disclosure” from the Pentagon?”

Rounds: “Not really whistleblowers. We’ve simply — when we have people who have direct firsthand knowledge, a personal experience and who have a professional background with either a contractor or a former federal government — then I’ll take the time to sit down and visit with them and learn as much as I can.”

Laslo: “Are those voices more important now that we’re getting this release from the Pentagon or…?”

Rounds: “The voices have been there and they’ve talked to us, but we don’t really talk about who they are because we want them to be able to trust us — that we’re not going to disclose who they are. Most of them still work for either contractors or for the federal government, as they have for years. And we’ll do our best to protect them, so I really don’t want to get into specifics.”*

*we don’t want their identities! We were just asking if any new ones have come forward…

Laslo: “Do you think your Disclosure Act would help them?”

Share

Rounds: “Yeah, because I think the information that they have — or that is in the possession or of the government — would become a permanent official record outside of the existing agency structure.”

Laslo: “Have you guys still been looking, like, have you found where these SAPs are that are supposedly hidden from Congress — these Special Access Programs?”

Rounds: “It’s not so much that it’s hidden, it’s just a matter of the silos do exist. You may have the folks who are members of the armed services who might not know what the IC — the intelligence community — is actually doing.”

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Rounds: “And so — or you may have items that the armed services are doing that the Intel community may not be aware of. And so these silos are part of the challenge, because if something is observed and they’re a professional and they don’t know what it is, they’ll talk about the fact — in privacy or in a secure environment — about something that’s been observed that they might not be aware of. They also recognize that it may be something they’re not privy to. And so they’re very careful about talking about it.”

Laslo: “Yeah? Because right now we’ve been seeing the Pentagon release stuff, but nothing from the Department of Energy or other spots. Do you think…?”

Rounds: “I can’t tell you why. Just that is the executive branch. And we’re getting more than we ever did before.”

Laslo: “Yeah.”

Rounds: “So, step in the right direction. And maybe as they gain more confidence that the American public really want to see it, maybe we’ll see more of it in the future.”

Share

What should we ask Congress next?

Ask a Pol AI Disclosure:
Ask a Pol’s playing around with as many new AI tools as we can, so this small, unfunded startup can compete in today’s new media landscape. (generative) AI isn’t tomorrow’s tech — it’s yesterday’s…

Who?

Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD) — Original sponsor, UAP Disclosure Act

LISTEN: Laslo & Rounds

Ask a Pol asks:

With the White House moving on UFO disclosure on its own, is your UAP Disclosure Act with Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer still needed?

Key Rounds:

“I think we can still work in tandem,” Sen. Mike Rounds exclusively told Ask a Pol UAP. “I think there’s a realization that if we’ve got information out there that can be released, it’s probably just a good thing to be released.”

Subscribe now

ICYMI — Update: Networks still attacking us

Caught our ear:

“I just want to make sure that if we are releasing stuff, none of it has to do with anything that would impact our national security in terms of our programs or our intel on other programs,” Rounds told us.

Leave a comment

TRANSCRIPT: Sen. Mike Rounds (6-10-2026)

SCENE: Sen. Mike Rounds — an original sponsor of the UAP Disclosure Act alongside Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer — is moving through the Capitol when Ask a Pol’s Matt Laslo catches him for a quick but substantive exchange.

Share

Matt Laslo: “Have you looked at any of these videos the Pentagon’s released?”

Sen. Mike Rounds: “Not in an organized fashion, no.”

ML: “Yeah? I’m just curious about the dynamics with your UAP Disclosure Act with Schumer — if the White House is moving on that on its own, do you guys not need your bill?”

Rounds: “I don’t know. I think we can still work in tandem. I think there’s a realization that if we’ve got information out there that can be released, it’s probably just a good thing to be released.”

ML: “Yeah?”

Rounds: “But I just want to make sure that if we are releasing stuff, none of it has to do with anything that would impact our national security in terms of our programs or our intel on other programs.”

Ask a Pol AI Disclosure:
Ask a Pol’s playing around with as many new AI tools as we can, so this small, unfunded startup can compete in today’s new media landscape. (generative) AI isn’t tomorrow’s tech — it’s yesterday’s…

I’ve now sent a personal letter to the Speaker, Minority Leader, Senate Leaders and each member of the Senate Rules Committee, begging them to intervene.

Share

My Bureau, The LCB, has provided clips, W-9s, proof of payments, etc. — yet nothing has been good enough to appease Senate Radio-TV Gallery Director Mike Mastrian and Executive Committee Chair Nate Reed of Scripps (a streaming service).

Please, someone, help!

- Laslo

PS - below find a link to some of what’s cited in the video.

ICYMI — something’s off at RTCA

Subscribe now

Who?

Rep. Eric Burlison (R-MO) — Congressional UAP Caucus; House Oversight Committee

LISTEN: Laslo & Burlison

Ask a Pol asks:

Is Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s bipartisan UAP Disclosure Act — or UAPDA — still needed even with the Pentagon and White House now declassifying UFO content?

Key Burlison:

“Oh, yes, absolutely. We’re going to keep trying to get that,” Rep. Eric Burlison exclusively tells Ask a Pol UAP. “We’re in fact working on it right now, trying to get that on the [National Defense Authorization Act or NDAA].”

Caught our ear:

“It will probably happen in the committee, in the Rules process,” Burlison tells us.*

*Impromptu Rules Primer: The Speaker controls the House by controlling the Rules Committee, which currently has 9 Republican members compared to a mere 4 for Democrats.

Because there are 435 members of the House, no bill comes to the floor without an agreed-upon number of amendments for the entire House to vote on, along with a set amount of debate time divided between Republicans and Democrats.

Share

In choosing which amendments are in order, the Rules Committee plays a ton of defense on the Speaker’s behalf. So, while once again, the UAPDA wasn’t included in the House Armed Services-passed National Defense Authorization Act, if there’s broad bipartisan agreement among committee Chairs and the Speaker — historically called backroom dealing… — they can amend the underlying legislation without a formal vote of the entire House. Then that new amended measure would come before the full House for a vote.

Subscribe now

It’s early in the process, so there’s also a chance Burlison and the Congressional UAP Caucus fail to get the UAPDA inserted into the underlying bill. Then they could try to convince the Speaker and his allies on the Rules Committee to allow the UAPDA to be voted on by the full House as a standalone amendment to the NDAA.

The UAPDA could also still get tucked into the Senate NDAA, though its authors tell Ask a Pol UAP it’s still early in the process.

Mini aside, while the Rules Committee has gotten more ideologically diverse since Speaker McCarthy was run out of the Capitol, the new, more far-right conservatives on the panel — who Johnson had to agree to to garner the support needed to win the Speaker’s gavel — have proven a headache for Speaker Johnson and the GOP agenda.

Leave a comment

TRANSCRIPT: Rep. Eric Burlison (6-9-2026)

SCENE: After the bipartisan Congressional UAP Caucus press conference broke on Tuesday, Ask a Pol founder Matt Laslo waited in the wings until Rep. Eric Burlison left the throngs of people amassed outside the US Capitol.

Laslo then accompanied Burlison to the historic House Carriage Entrance before the Congressman rushed to cast his vote on the floor of the US House of Representatives.

Matt Laslo: “UAPDA — is that still needed or not at this point?”

Rep. Eric Burlison: “Oh, yes, absolutely. We’re going to keep trying to get that. In fact, we’re working that right now, trying to get that on the bill.”

Laslo: “Yeah? Are you talking with [Schumer’s Republican co-sponsor Sen. Mike] Rounds?”

Burlison: “It will probably happen in the committee, in the Rules process.”*

Laslo: “Yeah?”

Share Ask a Pol UAP

What should we ask Congress next?