Senator Marshall Op-Ed: Serving Kansans doesn’t stop during a shutdown
Early in the week, I published an op-ed in the Hays Post, writing that despite the ongoing government shutdown, my offices remain open and continue to serve Kansans.
Read the full op-ed HERE or see the excerpt below:
“Washington is shut down – again – and Americans have every right to be frustrated. Once again, the dysfunction in D.C. threatens to disrupt lives far beyond the Beltway. And while the political blame game plays out, Kansans are left wondering how this gridlock will affect their families and their livelihoods.
“It’s important to know how we got here in the first place. A clean, short-term funding bill — known as a continuing resolution — was introduced by Republicans to keep the government open for seven more weeks.
“This measure would have given Congress the time to complete the normal appropriations process, work towards a balanced budget, and hammer out the details of next year’s funding. But to pass in the Senate, the bill needed bipartisan support — at least 60 votes — which means cooperation across the aisle. Unfortunately, that cooperation didn’t transpire.
“Like many Americans, I am frustrated that we are in this situation. But while some federal offices may close their doors or scale back operations, I want to be clear with the people of Kansas: my office is open, and we’re still working for you.”
Senator Marshall Blasts Democrats for Voting Against Military Pay Bill
Disgracefully, Senate Democrats voted against my colleague Senator Ron Johnson’s (R-Wisconsin) bill, which would have provided paychecks for military service members and “excepted” federal employees who have worked without pay during the last 24 days.
Chuck Schumer’s party showed heartless indifference to military families today and federal workers, including members of their own staff, by blocking their pay to push funding for illegal aliens’ healthcare.
The brave men and women of our military risk their lives every day to defend our freedom — and they deserve better than this.
Sadly, on Oct. 31, those military troops will miss a paycheck.
On Nov. 1, the following federal programs will run out of federal funding:
WIC
SNAP
Federal education impact aid
Military tuition assistance
Head Start
All federal employees will have missed at least one full paycheck
Several public-facing programs have already run out of funds, impacting Kansans of all ages across the state:
Some FSA programs and services
USDA Rural Development programs and payments to local contractors
Federal Flood Insurance Program
Medicare telehealth
Acute Care Hospital Care at Home
National Parks
Eisenhower Presidential Library
Senator Marshall: It’s Time for Democrats to Come to Their Senses
As the Schumer Shutdown entered its third week, I spoke with multiple news outlets, including Fox Business, MSNBC, Newsmax, Bloomberg, Fox News Radio, and KCMO, to discuss potential off-ramps, the unaffordability of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), what solutions Republicans are proposing, and our attempts to get paychecks for our troops and federal workers.
We also discussed a potential congressional stock trading ban, renovations at the White House, President Trump’s trade negotiations with Argentina for beef imports, rural healthcare, my Patients Deserve Price Tags Transparency Act, and the strikes against drug cartels near Venezuela.
Click HERE or on the image above to watch my interview with Fox Business.
Click HERE or on the image above to watch my full interview with Newsmax.
Click HERE or on the image above to listen to my full interview on Fox News Rundown.
Click HERE or on the image above to watch my interview with Fox Business.
Click HERE or on the image above to watch my interview with Bloomberg.
Click HERE or on the image above to watch my interview with MSNBC.
Click HERE or on the image above to listen to my full interview with Pete Mundo on KCMO.
Senator Marshall: Democrats Own the Problems with the ACA
I also took to the Senate floor this week to call on Democrats to come to their senses and reopen the government so there can then be a conversation about their broken healthcare system.
As I said in part during my remarks, “as all America knows, my friends across the aisle have kidnapped the federal government.
“In fact, they’ve now voted a dozen times not to reopen the government, and even, surprisingly to most of us, twice, they voted against funding the military during these challenging times. I think it’s obvious to all of America that this is a political shutdown, that this is showbiz to them, this is an opportunity for their left legacy media to shout and scream at President Trump and to kowtow to their far-left Marxist base.”
Click HERE or on the image above to watch my full remarks.
Senator Marshall: We Need to Turn Patients Into Consumers Again
During a Senate Special Committee on Aging, I had the opportunity to question numerous witnesses, including Entrepreneur Mark Cuban, Co-Founder of the Surgery Center of Oklahoma and the Free Market Medical Association, G. Keith Smith, M.D., and Chief Health Director of CalPERS, Don Moulds, PhD. My questions focused on how shoppable services can improve outcomes and lower costs for Americans.
I asked those in the hearing, “Could you imagine going into a restaurant, you look at the menu, have your choice between a good Kansas City strip or some day-old chicken with gravy and cream on it to make it taste good, and not knowing what the price tags are?
“But for some reason, in healthcare, it’s the only industry in the world, in America, that doesn’t have a price tag with it.”
Click HERE or on the image above to watch my full line of questioning.
Senator Marshall: Broken ACA Sticks 24 Million Americans with $5,000 Deductibles
In a separate Senate Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions hearing, focused on the 340b program and examining its growth and impact on patients, I was able to question Michelle Rosenberg, Director of Health Care at the U.S. Government Accountability Office, Aditi Sen, Ph.D., Chief of the Health Policy Studies Unit at the Congressional Budget Office, and William B. Feldman, MD, Dphil, MPH, physician and health policy researcher at the University of California.
Click HERE or on the image above to watch my full line of questioning.
Senator Marshall Tours Clinical Reference Laboratory & Highlights Dangers of Synthetic Kratom Compound “7-OH”
Earlier today, I joined leaders from the Clinical Reference Laboratory and the Midwest High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area (HIDTA) to raise awareness about the growing threat of 7-hydroxymitragynine (7-OH) – a powerful, unregulated opioid compound derived from the kratom plant and now widely available in retail stores across the United States.
This product, despite sometimes being marketed as harmless, can, in fact, be 13 times more potent than morphine.
During this tour, I met with Matt Roney and Bob Thompson of Clinical Reference Laboratory and Dan Neill, Executive Director of the Midwest HIDTA, to review their findings showing that 7-OH is being sold in gas stations, convenience stores, and vape shops – often disguised as natural kratom products.
What we know is that these synthetic versions of kratom are highly addictive and dangerously misleading. In June 2025, I sent a letter to FDA Commissioner Makary urging the agency to act on 7-OH’s growing prevalence in over-the-counter products. I hope the FDA will provide consumers and retailers with the clarity of knowing what’s safe and what’s not.
