Rounds: Trade, gun control and wife’s condition topics during summer hiatus

HURON – When he was back in the state for the August break, Republican South Dakota Senator Mike Rounds fielded the most questions about challenges producers are having with the unusually wet weather, gun control and proposed red flag laws and the future of trade and tariffs.
But the one inquiry he got from everyone he spoke with had to do with his wife, Jean, who is undergoing cancer treatments at the Mayo Clinic.
In a conference call with reporters on Thursday, Rounds said he was at her side for two of the four treatments she has had, and will accompany her again next week when they hear how her doctors plan to proceed next.
“She has handled it very well,” he said of the treatments. “They’ve made a difference. We’ve seen the size of the tumor shrink.”
Rounds will join Sen. John Thune, R-S.D., and Rep. Dusty Johnson, R-S.D., in Sioux Falls today to meet with the mayor and other officials regarding the response to the damaging tornadoes that hit the city late Tuesday night. They will also tour some of the damaged areas.
The state’s delegation will offer its help with anything that can be done at the federal level to recover from the three twisters, he said.
“If nothing else, we can just be there to offer support,” Rounds said.
Despite the extensive damage, he said he is grateful there were no serious injuries or deaths from the tornadoes and straight-line winds reaching speeds of 130 mph.
With a late planting because of the mid-April blizzard and subsequent thunderstorms, the concern now is the fall harvest.
“The farm community is feeling the effects of this weather as well,” he said.
Rounds said his thoughts are also for the people of Mitchell and Madison and other areas that are dealing with heavy rain and flooding this week.

Now back in session, the Senate has so far confirmed 150 judges under the Trump administration. The attention has turned to finalizing the appropriations process, but there are roadblocks ahead, he said.
“Everyone here thought we had a deal,” he said, adding that Democrats are withholding their support.
“We’ve got a challenge there,” Rounds said.
“We’re not exactly sure where we go from here, but it’s not good news.”
While he doesn’t want to see yet another government shutdown when the fiscal year ends at the end of September, he also doesn’t favor continuing resolutions, something he has been adamant about since taking office. “We can’t keep kicking the can down the road,” he said. “That does not work.”
As it stands now, he said Democrats “want to renegotiate the deal we thought we had.”
Meanwhile, it appears China is suggesting it wants to re-enter trade negotiations with the United States and in response Trump has agreed to withhold additional tariffs, he said.
“Whether or not it proves to be fruitful we don’t know,” Rounds said. “It’s one thing to be hopeful – we are hopeful – but I want to see results.”
Producers for the most part are supporting the president on trade issues, but aren’t happy his tactics have not been successful, he said.
But he said he believes progress will come within the next month on the United States-Mexico-Canada trade agreement.
While members of Congress were back home in their districts this summer, the nation was rocked with even more mass shootings, and gun control and the status of proposed red flag laws are on the minds of South Dakotans, Rounds said.
“In the Senate, most members understand the Second Amendment is critical,” he said.
But he said there has to be due process, involving a judge, before guns are taken away from people.
“We need an adjudication process in place,” Rounds said, but adding that there are concerns that red flag laws will try to bypass that.