Who?
Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD) — Member, Intelligence & Armed Services Committees; co-author, UAP Disclosure Act (with Sen. Chuck Schumer)
LISTEN: Laslo & Rounds
Ask a Pol asks:
Remember that former Congressman Matt Gaetz? Well, he’s out there saying he was briefed by a military guy who claimed that there was like a human-alien hybrid program…
Key Rounds:
“A what?” the senior member of the powerful Senate Intelligence and Armed Services Committees says.
“I don’t f***ing know, sir,” Laslo replies.
Rounds laughs.
But basically, humans and aliens being, like, bred together by the government. What do you make of that?
“That’s a new one on me,” Sen. Mike Rounds exclusively tells Ask a Pol UAP.
That’s someone through your party.
Rounds laughs.
“Well, I don’t think they’re part of the Congress anymore,” Rounds says. “Maybe there’s a reason for that.”
UAPDA sponsors sidelined:
What are you hearing from the White House about President Donald Trump saying he’s going to release all the UFO files?
“Haven’t heard a word,” Rounds says. “Nope. Haven’t heard a word.”
Does that make you dubious that UFO disclosure’s coming?
“No,” Rounds tells us. “The President probably has the same curiosity the rest of us do.”
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Caught our ear:
“Way back in the 1960s, the SR-71 Blackbird was not a known commodity. A lot of sightings out there were of that,” Rounds tells us. “I suspect that the Air Force might very well have been using the UFO interest to hide a number of national security products that were being tested.”
Below find a rough transcript of Ask a Pol’s exclusive interview with Sen. Mike Rounds (R-SD), slightly edited for clarity.
TRANSCRIPT: Sen. Mike Rounds (4-14-2026)
SCENE: Ask a Pol’s Matt Laslo spots Sen. Mike Rounds and two aides hopping one of the Senate’s underground trams, so he slides onto the tram car — before realizing the other half of it is overflowing with Spring tourists.
Sen. Mike Rounds: “Hi! How are you guys doing?”
Tourist I: “Good.”
Tourist II: “And you?”
Rounds: “Good.”
Rounds turns to Laslo.
Rounds: “What are you up to?”
Matt Laslo: “Who knows?”
Rounds: “Chasing stuff down yet?”
Laslo: “A little bit.”
Rounds: “Ahhh.”
Laslo: “What are you hearing from the White House about Trump says he’s going to release all the UFO files?”
Rounds: “Haven’t heard a word.”
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Laslo: “No?”
Rounds: “Nope. Haven’t heard a word.”
Laslo: “Does that make you skeptical of the claim…?”
Rounds: “No.”
Tram starts pulling away from Capitol.
Rounds: “No. I just think the President probably has the same curiosity the rest of us do.”
Laslo: “Yeah? But why…have you guys brought up — your UAP Disclosure Act with [Senate Minority Leader Chuck] Schumer — to the White House liaison or anything the past couple years?”
Rounds: “Not that I recall.”
Laslo: “It just never got to that level?”
Rounds: “No. It’s not like we’re visiting with the White House regularly, because it’s more along the lines of we’ve got communication with them based on specific activity or items that are currently in the news, more or less.”
Laslo: “Did you see the House, I guess the UAP Caucus, they sent a list to the administration of like 40, 46 different videos that they say they’ve seen, I guess, in classified settings and they say they want these released publicly? I’m like, how do you remember all those names coming out of a SCIF [Sensitive Compartmented Information Facility]?”
Rounds: “Well…”
Laslo: “I think they’ve got someone giving them a list.”
Rounds: “I can’t tell you that.”
Laslo: “Yeah?”
Rounds: “I don’t know.”
Laslo: “Have you seen 46 different videos?”
Rounds: “I’ve never counted.”
Laslo: “Yeah? Do you think a lot of this stuff that you guys have seen should be made public?”
Rounds: “It will depend on whether or not we’ve identified as to whether or not it’s our product or an adversary’s product or one that we simply don’t know.”
Laslo: “Yeah?”
Rounds: “Look, my concern is that as we move through this and we make disclosures, let’s make disclosures on those items that aren’t going to impact our national security activities. And that’s the sensitive part of this. Way back in the 1960s, the SR-71 Blackbird was not a known commodity. A lot of sightings out there were of that. I suspect that the Air Force might very well have been using the UFO interest to hide a number of national security products that were being tested. So I just don’t want us to get in the position of saying we have to disclose stuff that might be products of our own making or of our adversary’s making that we prefer not to have out and about.”
Laslo: “Do you remember the name Matt Gaetz?”
Rounds looks at a loss as his staff whispers in his ear.
Laslo: “Matt Gaetz, he’s now got his own show on OAN.”
Rounds: “Oh, okay.”
Laslo: “He’s out there saying that he was briefed by a military, by military personnel, a guy who claimed that there was like a human-alien hybrid program.”
Rounds: “A what?”
Laslo: “I don’t f***ing know, sir.”
Rounds laughs.
Laslo: “But basically, humans and aliens being, like, bred together by the government. What do you make of that?”
Rounds: “That’s a new one on me.”
Laslo: “That’s someone through your party, right?”
Rounds laughs.
Rounds: “Well, I don’t think they’re part of the Congress anymore. Maybe there’s a reason for that.”
Laslo: “Yeah? Fun times.”
Rounds: “Have a good one.”
Laslo: “Preciate ya.”
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