Friends,

After a busy week back home, I returned to Washington last week. With the One Big Beautiful Bill now in the Senate’s hands, the House will now turn our attention to enacting smaller pieces of President Trump’s America First agenda, with the shared goal of getting our country back on the right track.

On Tuesday evening, I joined my colleagues from Kansas and Colorado for a moment of silence to mourn the victims of the horrific antisemitic attacks in Washington, DC and Boulder.

These disgusting acts have absolutely no place in our country. It’s incredibly important for all of us to stand strong against these radical, hate-filled views, which unfortunately seem to be increasingly commonplace in our world.

Last week, the House passed several pro-small businesses bills and legislation aimed at tackling the opioid crisis, I questioned Army leadership about the impact on Kansas of their planned branch-wide changes, and I joined my colleagues to fight for increased opportunities for Kansas farmers.

Last week, the House passed multiple bills aiming to protect and strengthen Kansas small businesses.

H.R. 2966, the American Entrepreneurs First Act, codifies the Small Business Administration’s (SBA) recently announced policy requiring proof of citizenship and age verification when applying for an SBA loan. Earlier this year, the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) found more than $630 million in loans given to applicants older than 115 years old and younger than 11. That is unacceptable.

H.R. 2931, the Save SBA from Sanctuary Cities Act, relocates SBA offices from sanctuary cities and jurisdictions to non-sanctuary municipalities. Fortunately, states like ours saw the dangers of sanctuary jurisdictions and banned the practice statewide in 2022. Unfortunately, not every state has the common sense of Kansas, and sanctuary policies still exist across the country. By relocating these offices to non-sanctuary localities, we’re returning the agency to its original intent of helping small businesses without having to fear the consequences of these misguided policies.

Both these pieces of legislation aim to codify aspects of President Trump’s Executive Order ending taxpayer subsidization of the Biden border crisis.

Last week, the House passed the SUPPORT for Patients and Communities Reauthorization Act of 2025, which ensures the federal government will continue to provide critical prevention, education, treatment, and recovery resources for Americans with substance use disorder.

This is such a personal issue for so many people; everyone knows someone who struggles or has struggled with addiction. On Wednesday, I spoke on the House floor about how our statewide efforts in Kansas made a real difference in many people’s lives.

Recently released data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention shows overdose deaths involving opioids decreased from an estimated 83,140 in 2023 to 54,743 in 2024 (26%). While this is welcome news, the number of deaths remains far too high.

Providing resources for education, prevention, and treatment is absolutely critical; however, this crisis must be addressed on multiple fronts. In Kansas, we took the pharmaceutical companies engaging in malpractice and contributing to the crisis to court and won. The resulting settlements will provide more than $340 million to our state over the next 17 years, money which will make a real difference in our communities.

The southern border is an enormous factor in the crisis. During fiscal years 2023-2024 alone, Customs and Border Patrol seized nearly 50,000 pounds of fentanyl, enough to produce more than 2 billion lethal doses. Thankfully, with President Trump in office, the border crisis is largely contained…for now. Congress MUST make the President’s border security measures permanent so we can continue to decrease the amount of criminal illegal aliens and deadly narcotics in our communities.

India’s population growth and the shifting global economy have skyrocketed their demand and desire for American agricultural products. The export market is extremely important to our state: in 2024, Kansas exported more than $14 billion of goods across various industries.

A key piece of President Trump’s America First economic agenda involves increasing exports to other nations as a way to reduce our trade deficits. India’s growing demand for our products presents a perfect opportunity, which is why I recently joined my colleagues to encourage United States Trade Ambassador Jamieson Greer to provide improved market access for American agricultural exports in the country, specifically U.S. ethanol, distillers’ dried grains with solubles (DDGS), and soybean meal (SBM).

These products aren’t the only thing in demand in India. Traditionally, China is the biggest international buyer of U.S. sorghum, accounting for nearly 90% of total U.S. exports as recently as marketing year 2021/2022. However, in recent years, India’s population growth has spurred a steady increase in demand for non-GMO grain, which is why India’s sorghum market is projected to generate $1.2 billion annually by 2030.

Kansas is the number one producer of sorghum in the country, averaging 185 million bushels annually. That number is equal to half of all production in the United States. India’s rapidly growing market presents an enormous opportunity for Kansas farmers, which is why I also recently joined fellow Kansas Representative Tracey Mann and several of our colleagues in encouraging Ambassador Greer to increase Indian market access for our sorghum producers.

Four years of Bidenflation were extremely tough on our family farms. I’m working to repair that damage and provide our farmers with the support they need for long term success.

Last week, our House Armed Services Committee held a hearing on the Army’s budgetary needs for fiscal year 2026. Their request is of particular importance this year, as Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth recently announced the Army Transformation Initiative (ATI), a $36 billion overhaul of the branch with a focus on modernization.

The Second District is home to two of the Army’s divisions at Forts Riley and Leavenworth. I questioned Secretary of the Army Daniel Driscoll and Army Chief of Staff General Randy George on how the ATI will affect our soldiers and assets in the Second District.

In the coming weeks, our committee will introduce the National Defense Authorization Act, which authorizes funding for every aspect of our Armed Forces. This year’s legislation will be transformational, as we work alongside President Trump to refocus our military’s priorities on warfighting and servicemember quality of life. I look forward to sharing updates about the legislation soon.

Thank you to Kansans with the Ford Motor Company, United States Department of Agriculture Kansas State Director for Rural Development Gimmie Jo Jansonius, the Kansas Association of REALTORS, National Feed & Grain Association, and Kansans with the Foundation for Rural Service for visiting with me in Washington last week!

I’d also like to extend a big thank you to all the Kansans who joined our monthly telephone town hall on Thursday evening! Speaking directly to Second District residents is critical to ensuring I’m representing you to the best of my ability. If you weren’t able to join us last night, be sure to keep an eye out for next month’s!

I’ll be back in Washington this week, where I expect to vote on the first rescissions package we’ve received from the White House. Now that we’ve passed the One Big Beautiful Bill, we MUST turn our attention to codifying President Donald J. Trump’s Executive Orders and the DOGE cuts.

Kansans deserve a strong economy, a secure border, and a government free from waste, fraud, and abuse. I aim to deliver it.

Friends,

After passing the One Big Beautiful Bill last week, I was back in Kansas to observe Memorial Day and meet with constituents across the district. Nothing beats coming home!

We recently learned President Trump approved Kansas’s request for a federal disaster declaration following March’s severe storms that claimed the lives of at least 32 people across our region. We unfortunately suffered major damage right here in the Second District when the storm spread a brush fire to the nursing facility in Yates Center. Thankfully, no one was injured, but the facility suffered a total loss. The severe weather also caused additional damage and tragic loss of life when a dust storm in western Kansas caused a 70+ car pileup, claiming 8 lives and injuring nearly 50 people.

Last month, I joined my Kansas colleagues in encouraging President Trump to approve this declaration. The declaration is critically important, as it allows our impacted cities, counties, and select nonprofits to apply for special assistance from the federal government. The storm damaged nearly one-third of Kansas counties, and the state estimates up to $8.5 million of these storm damages are eligible to be repaired using federal funding.

Rebuilding our communities after severe weather events is never easy, but I’m confident we’ll continue to assist our fellow Kansans who were affected by these storms in any way we can. Though the federal declaration will go a very long way toward recovery, it’s still up to us to help our neighbors out during their time of need.

I’m thankful our state and federal leadership came together to secure these funding resources. I will always put the needs of Kansans first in Washington.

This week, our House Judiciary Committee announced we’re teaming up with the House Oversight Committee to investigate the Mayor of Nashville, TN, for blocking federal enforcement of immigration laws.

While this investigation is specific to Nashville, sanctuary city policies exist across our country. Several weeks ago, I highlighted how these policies weaken community safety, even in states that have outlawed them.

The American people have been very clear: they’re sick of the open borders and lawlessness that defined the previous administration. As my colleagues and I work to conduct rigorous oversight to keep Americans safe, we must also codify President Trump’s commonsense executive orders.

The One Big Beautiful Bill Act provided much needed funding for border security and the deportation of illegal aliens; however, turning these executive orders into laws is the only way to ensure a single administration can never again unilaterally endanger our country the way the previous one did.

Council Grove Lake is a popular spot for Kansans to boat, swim, camp, and relax during the summer months. Unfortunately, because the lake is managed by the Army Corps of Engineers, the lake’s operating status for the summer was recently in flux due to a staffing shortage stemming from the federal hiring freeze.

Thankfully, after I worked with the Trump Administration and Senator Jerry Moran, Army Secretary Daniel Driscoll signed a hiring freeze exemption for the lake last week. The exemption will allow Council Grove to hire the necessary staff to keep the lake open all summer long.

I applaud the Department of Defense for their quick response, and I join Senator Moran in encouraging the Army Corps to hire these positions quickly so Kansans can enjoy their summer activities without interruption!

Last week, the House continued to move America back toward energy independence by undoing another burdensome and unnecessary regulation imposed by the prior administration.

S.J. Res. 31 reverses the Biden-era “Once-in, Always-in” rule, which permanently classified industrial facilities as “major sources” of emissions. President Trump revoked this policy prior to leaving office after his first term; however, the Biden administration reinstated it during their last months in power.

The rule has two major negative effects: not only does it place unnecessarily high emissions standards on our energy producers, eliminating good-paying Kansas jobs and raising prices for consumers, it actually discourages our producers from lowering emissions. When the Trump Administration revoked the rule, it allowed energy producers who made significant investments in emission reduction to “reclassify,” moving them into a category which provides more emission standards flexibility and lowers the costs imposed on producers.

This rule is yet another example of how the heavy hand of government often stifles innovation, raises costs, and discourages innovation and investment for American producers. With the One Big Beautiful Bill now in the Senate’s hands, I hope to see the House move onto undoing many more of the previous administration’s rules in the coming weeks.

Congratulations to the Pittsburg State University Men’s and Women’s Track & Field teams, who performed excellently at the 2025 NCAA Division II Outdoor National Championships this past weekend in Colorado!

The men took home the championship by winning seven individual event national titles over the three-day meet, leading to a dominant win. This is Pitt State’s fourth consecutive men’s outdoor national championship victory and eighth overall track & field title (including two indoor titles this year and last year).

The women, meanwhile, placed third overall and took home Pitt State’s fourth straight top 10 outdoor national finish. This came after their MIAA Outdoor Conference Championship victory earlier this month.

Congratulations to both the men’s and women’s team for their outstanding performances! We’re blessed to have such an accomplished athletics program here in southeast Kansas.

I’ll return to Washington next week. With the One Big Beautiful Bill in the Senate’s hands, our focus is now codifying both President Trump’s executive orders and the DOGE cuts. Without congressional action, all the good work this administration has done so far could be wiped away with the stroke of a pen once someone new comes along.

We must not allow that to happen.