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US Senator Mike Rounds Weekly Update: WEEKLY ROUND[S] UP: April 20-26, 2026

Welcome back to another Weekly Round[s] Up, where we’re in the thick of appropriations season! I attended four hearings focused on President Trump’s budget and had the opportunity to question several key officials, including Secretary of Health and Human Services Robert Kennedy, Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins, Secretary of Energy Chris Wright and Secretary of the Interior Doug Burgum. I also questioned Federal Reserve Chairman nominee Kevin Warsh in his confirmation hearing in front of the Senate Banking Committee. We expect to vote on his nomination in our committee this coming week, and I look forward to supporting him.

This past Wednesday evening, the Senate passed a budget resolution which sets the stage for a reconciliation bill to fund Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and Border Patrol (BP) until the end of the Trump presidency. As you may recall, Democrats have continued to block full funding for the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Instead, we passed legislation in the Senate to fund DHS with the exception of ICE and BP through the end of this year. This legislation is still awaiting passage by the House. By using the budget reconciliation process, we are able to pass funding for ICE and BP with a simple majority vote. While it’s not our preference to fund these agencies this way, we’ve been forced to use this mechanism by Senate Democrats who refuse to fund homeland security through the regular appropriations process. After 17 votes from about 9:00 p.m. until 3:00 a.m. on Wednesday night, the reconciliation bill passed the Senate 50–48. It now heads to the House of Representatives, where leaders are hoping to move it forward this week. If all goes according to plan, we expect to get these important departments funded by the end of May.

Additionally, I visited Dakota State University (DSU) in Madison this past Friday with some of the Pentagon’s top leaders in cybersecurity. I also was in Sioux Falls for an event at the Disabled American Veterans (DAV) Department of South Dakota headquarters. More on these stops below in my Weekly Round[s] Up:

South Dakota groups I visited with: Tura Synhorst, Executive Vice President of Corporate Affairs of Coca-Cola Bottling Company High Country in Rapid City; South Dakota Association of Healthcare Organizations; South Dakotans with the American Physical Therapy Association; South Dakota Beer Distributors; South Dakota Snowmobile Association; South Dakotans with the National Association of Trailer Manufacturers; leadership from Daktronics in Brookings; South Dakotans with NeighborWorks Dakota Coalition; South Dakota Cattlemen’s Association; Independent Insurance Agents of South Dakota; South Dakota Head Start Association; Goodwill of the Great Plains; and Cory Clasemann, President of Southeast Technical College.

As I mentioned earlier, this past Friday, I visited Madison Cyber Lab at DSU in Madison to participate in meetings with Katie Sutton, Assistant Secretary of Defense for Cyber Policy, Brandon Pugh, Principal Cyber Advisor to the Secretary of the Army and DSU President Jose-Marie Griffiths. I was grateful these top Pentagon officials accepted my invitation to make the trip to South Dakota to see all of the great work the students and faculty at DSU are doing to advance our national security. We all know that South Dakota is a great place to live, work and raise a family. Our goal in helping to develop these federal-state partnerships is to provide another opportunity for kids to stay in South Dakota after graduation.

I also visited the DAV Department of South Dakota headquarters to speak during the 86th Annual DAV Department Convention and 74th Annual State Auxiliary Convention. During the event, one of my staff members Bob DeJong was recognized for his Excellence in Constituent Services helping veterans navigate the VA. I’m grateful to have Bob on my team and for all of the work he does for veterans.

Met with South Dakotans from: Aberdeen, Arlington, Brookings, De Smet, Fort Pierre, Gettysburg, Huron, Kyle, Mellette, Mitchell, Mobridge, Pierre, Rapid City, Salem, Sioux Falls, Sisseton, Tulare, Watertown, Wessington Springs and Whitewood

Hearings: This past week, I attended eight hearings, including two classified Select Committee on Intelligence briefings, a Senate Armed Services Committee (SASC) hearing and a SASC Strategic Forces Subcommittee hearing. During a Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs nomination hearing, I questioned Kevin Warsh on his nomination to serve as a Member and Chairman of the Federal Reserve Board of Governors.

As I mentioned, appropriations subcommittee hearings for FY27 also kicked off this week:

• Labor, Health and Human Services, Education, and Related Agencies Subcommittee hearing where I questioned Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. on lab-grown “meat” products.
• Interior, Environment, and Related Agencies Subcommittee hearing where we heard from Secretary Doug Burgum on tribal radio and other priorities.
• Energy and Water Development Subcommittee hearing with Secretary of Energy Chris Wright, where I invited him to visit the Sanford Underground Research Facility near Lead.
• Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Subcommittee hearing with Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins where I asked about concerns surrounding lab-grown meat posing as real meat.

Votes taken: 20. At the beginning of the week, I voted to confirm Andrew B. Davis, of Texas, to be United States District Judge for the Western District of Texas. I also voted no at the Democrats’ attempt to take our military out of the ongoing conflict in Iran, again.

As I mentioned earlier, I cast 17 votes on amendments to the budget resolution to fund ICE and CBP. The budget resolution passed the Senate 50–48, with only Republican support. This resolution is now with the House of Representatives for further consideration. You can read more in detail about the votes I’ve taken here.

Steps taken: 57,682 steps or 26.4 miles.

My Staff in South Dakota Visited: Aberdeen, Brookings, Chamberlain, De Smet, Fort Pierre, Flandreau, Kennebec, Madison, Pierre, Rosebud, St. Francis and Sturgis.

Video of the Week: Click here to watch the Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, and Related Agencies Subcommittee hearing with Secretary Rollins. I was pleased that Secretary Rollins shares my concerns with lab-grown cells receiving the label of “meat” and plans to work to stop this from happening in the future.

John Pohlman, Republican candidate for District 10 House, is having a fundraiser next Wednesday in Sioux Falls:

John’s a fellow Pierre expatriate like myself, and we need all the help we can get for inexplicably having a fondness for arctic winds and politics in February. So, go give him some love and help send him to Pierre this next winter!

From Facebook, the Marty Jackley for Congress campaign appears to be going on the air with a new commercial. Check it out:

Attorney General Jackley Releases Draft Explanation on Proposed Constitutional Amendment Requiring Citizenship to Vote

PIERRE, S.D. – As required by state law, an explanation for a Constitutional Amendment proposed by the Legislature that would clarify that an individual must be a citizen of the United States to be eligible to vote has been filed with the Secretary of State’s Office.

Attorney General Marty Jackley takes no position on any such proposal for purposes of the ballot explanation. He has provided a fair and neutral explanation to help assist the voters as required by state law.

Sen. Jim Mehlhaff is listed as the prime sponsor of the proposal which was approved by the 2025 South Dakota Legislature.

The ballot explanation can be found here.

State law requires the Attorney General draft a title and explanation for each initiated measure, initiated constitutional amendment, constitutional amendment proposed by the Legislature, or referred measure that may appear on an election ballot. The Attorney General’s explanation is meant to be an “objective, clear, and simple summary” intended to “educate the voters of the purpose and effect of the proposed” measure, as well as identify the “legal consequences” of each measure.

Once the Attorney General has filed and posted the draft explanation, the public has 10 days to provide written comment. The explanation was filed April 28, 2026, and the deadline for comments on this explanation is May 8, 2026, at the close of business in Pierre, South Dakota. The final explanation is due to the Secretary of State on May 19, 2026.

If approved, the explanation will accompany the proposal on the 2026 general election ballot which is Nov. 3.

To file written comments regarding the language of the explanation, not the merits of the proprosal, please use one of the following methods below. Copies of all comments received by the deadline will be posted on this website.

Comments may be submitted via mail, or through hand delivery, to the Attorney General’s Office at:

Office of the Attorney General
Ballot Comment
1302 S.D. E. Hwy. 1889, Suite #1
Pierre, SD 57501

Comments that are hand delivered must be received by the close of business in Pierre, South Dakota, by May 8, 2026.

Comments may also be emailed to ATGballotcomments@state.sd.us by May 8, 2026 Comments should be clearly expressed in the body of the email. The Attorney General’s Office will not open attachments in an effort to prevent malware or other digital threats. Please include your name and contact information when submitting your comment. The title of the comment must be included in the subject line of the email.

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South Dakota Immunization Leaders Welcome Senator Rounds’ Support for Flu Vaccination Requirements in the Military

SIOUX FALLS, SD [April 28, 2026] — South Dakota vaccine advocates are welcoming recent comments from Senator Mike Rounds (R-SD) expressing support for maintaining the annual flu vaccine requirement for U.S. service members.

In recent remarks to The New York Times, Senator Rounds said, “It’s a proven vaccine… I personally would like to see it still in place.” For organizations working to protect public health across the state, the statement reflects a shared understanding that vaccines remain one of the most effective tools to keep people healthy and systems running smoothly.

“The flu vaccine has a long track record of protecting individuals and preventing disruptions, especially in settings like the military where readiness matters,” said Carmen Toft, director of South Dakota Families for Vaccines. “We appreciate Senator Rounds recognizing the value of keeping that protection in place.”

Experts note that consistent vaccination policies play an important role in maintaining workforce stability and reducing the spread of illness, whether in military settings, health care systems, or local communities. Research has shown that requirements can significantly increase vaccination rates and help prevent avoidable outbreaks.

“Influenza is often underestimated, but it can have serious consequences, especially for vulnerable populations,” said Dani Gullickson, executive director of Immunize South Dakota. “Annual vaccination is a simple, effective way to protect individuals and the broader community.”

For families who have experienced the impact of influenza firsthand, the issue is deeply personal.

“The flu is not just a bad cold; it can be life-threatening. I know this firsthand as I lost my 2-year-old daughter, Gianna, to the flu,” said Angie Wehrkamp, Sioux Falls resident and board member of Families Fighting Flu. “We’re encouraged to see leaders speak clearly about the importance of prevention. Vaccination saves lives, and policies that support it make a difference.”

As conversations about public health policy continue, advocates say moments of alignment like this matter.

“It’s a reminder that some issues don’t have to be complicated,” Toft added. “When something is proven, safe, and effective, keeping it in place is a strong and steady choice.”

South Dakotans can help keep the momentum going by contacting their state and federal lawmakers and sharing their support for strong, evidence-based vaccine policies that protect families and communities.

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About South Dakota Families for Vaccines 

South Dakota Families for Vaccines is a volunteer-driven, grassroots network of South Dakotans dedicated to advocating for public health rooted in fact-based public policy and promoting immunizations across the lifespan for healthier families and communities. For more information visit www.sdfamiliesforvaccines.org. 

I just had a legislator forward this to me.. and it’s very eye-opening about what a Doeden administration would bring to South Dakota’s test scores and the future of South Dakota’s school kids.

Don’t worry about test scores, because that’s not what’s important to Toby. What’s important are the quality of our coaches.

and..

and..

(All of this was in the Groton Daily Independent from Wednesday November 13, 2019.)

“The athletic culture in the Groton Area School system is broken. It’s broken. It’s absolutely broken, and anyone that doesn’t believe that is either in denial, is part of the problem, or worse yet, incapable of seeing something so obviously negative happening right in front of their eyes.”

“I’m not here tonight to cast blame, though there is plenty to go around. Administrators are to blame, teachers are to blame, coaches are to blame, and parents are to blame, including me.”

“..my lackluster high school GPA and flunking out of not 1 but 2 colleges proves it. High School was simply a necessary step for me.”  

“I can’t be clear enough on this point, just participating in sports is not enough. Just offering sports to the kids is not enough. Just filling coaching vacancies for the sake of filling coaching vacancies is not enough. Just having administrators focusing primarily on academics is not enough.  If we can at least agree that athletics plays a large role in developing and preparing students for life, then we need to act like it. We need to stop acting like sports is a privilege, because they are not. Sports are a necessity.“

Well,  Not sure that bragging about flunking out of 2 colleges is what I immediately go to for a Governor.

And maybe if some of the elected politicans would quit trying to strip money away from all that reading, writing and arithmetic, then we could figure out how to fund Toby’s coaching dreams.

Toby Doeden is one of those candidates who will just say anything (Especially if it’s written on his hand).  And that was in evidence last night, as he tried to pretend he supports for our State Universities:

At around 1:23:45 in the video from the debate last night (watch the replay here), Doeden claimed…

“I love our 4 year State Universities. I attended Northern State…”

Yet, this would seem to be a different opinion than the one he expressed at the beginning of the campaign in an interview with Stu Whitney:

In a household where neither parent attended college, higher education was a goal. Doeden’s three older siblings had all completed college and started careers by the time Toby graduated from high school in 1993.

Feeling outside pressures, he accepted a football and track scholarship to Minot State University in North Dakota, but his heart wasn’t in it.

“I remember unloading my little hatchback car, getting everything moved into my dorm room, and the very night I moved in thinking I should not be here,” Doeden said. “My feeling was, ‘This is an utter waste of time.’”

He qualified for the national track meet as a freshman but had already transferred to Northern State University in Aberdeen, where he lasted about a semester before proposing to Liz and moving to nearby Groton to put business plans in motion.

Read that here.

Telling a reporter that college was an utter waste of time versus his claim last night of “attending” Northern, and claiming to love our 4 year universities seems to be somewhat discordant.

A definition Toby probably would need to add to his hand list.

NOW we know what he had written on his hand!

I laughed out loud when I read this:

I think everyone saw Toby’s notes.

Is there someone who went to the Dakota Scout debate tonight with a tin can on a string? Wondering if I can hook in to your feed to improve the sound quality?

Is it really a debate if no one outside the theater can tell what the candidates are saying? The sound was largely indecipherable from Hansen and Rhoden.  Not much better from the other two, either.

The sound was good from the moderators.. but I didn’t tune in for just the questions. Like several who are texting and emailing, I might try the replay.

Update…

Go here: https://www.newscenter1.tv/watch-now

Much better sound across the board.

Another Update..

How many notes did Toby plan on writing on his hand?