Senator Mike Rounds Seeks More Information on Wounded Knee Medals Amidst Calls for Rescission
South Dakota Republican U.S. Sen. Mike Rounds has stated his intention to gather more information before deciding on the rescission of medals awarded to soldiers involved in the 1890 Wounded Knee Massacre. This stance comes after a Defense Department review, completed in September 2026, concluded that the medals would not be rescinded. Rounds, a member of the Senate Armed Services Committee, emphasized the need to 'get the facts' and suggested that the military, rather than Congress, should make the final decision. His opponent, Independent candidate Brian Bengs, has asserted that the medals 'should not stand,' calling their continued recognition a 'dishonor.' The massacre, which occurred on December 29, 1890, involved hundreds of Army soldiers surrounding a group of Lakota people, resulting in an estimated 200 or more Lakota deaths, including men, women, and children, compared to fewer than 40 soldier fatalities. The Defense Department's review panel, established in 2024, found that while leadership actio... 
