Congressman Derek Schmidt

I appreciated meeting with Kansans associated with America’s Blood Centers to discuss strengthening and protecting our nation’s blood supply. We discussed the importance of supporting blood centers, enhancing cybersecurity protections, and ensuring patients have access to lifesaving care, including pre-hospital blood transfusions. Thank you for sharing your insights and the critical work you do to keep our communities safe and healthy.

Great meeting with Ducks Unlimited to discuss conservation efforts and the importance of protecting wetlands, wildlife habitat, and Kansas’s natural resources. I appreciate the opportunity to discuss ways we can support conservation initiatives that benefit our communities, outdoor heritage, and future generations.

I had the pleasure of meeting with the Kansas Building Industry Association to talk about issues affecting Kansas builders, homeowners, and communities.

We discussed workforce development, energy regulations, and housing policies that support affordability and economic growth. I appreciated focusing on ways to strengthen Kansas's housing market and workforce.

Met this week with the Home Builders Association of Greater Kansas City to discuss the local housing market, affordability, and other issues important to builders and homebuyers. We focused particularly on housing challenges in the KCK part of our 2nd Congressional District. I was grateful for the conversation.

Every dollar stolen through fraud is a dollar taken from taxpayers. That's why I'm working hard to strengthen oversight, expose waste, and hold bad actors accountable.

In Congress, I've helped lead the bipartisan National Strategy for Combating Scams Act to crack down on scammers. I also introduced the STOP FRAUD in Medicaid Act and supported the STOP Scams Against Seniors Act to protect taxpayers and vulnerable Americans.

This week, the House is advancing additional measures to prevent fraudulent payments, strengthen accountability, and stop federal aid from going to ineligible "ghost students."

Government should be just as accountable with taxpayer dollars as Kansas families are with their household budgets.

I'll continue fighting to protect taxpayer dollars and ensure government works for the people, not those looking to game the system.

It was great meeting with Kansas and Missouri Toyota dealers to talk about the rapidly changing U.S. auto market. We had a productive discussion about the challenges facing domestic dealers, including growing competition from foreign state-subsidized manufacturers, and what those trends could mean for consumers, American jobs, and our economic security. Thank you to everyone who shared perspectives and insights.

Ensuring Kansans have access to the care they need remains an important priority. Thank you to Kansans with the United Methodist Health Ministry Fund for coming by my office to discuss rural health funding and expanding access to quality healthcare across Kansas.

In January, we had a bipartisan agreement to fund the Department of Homeland Security for the next year --including border security and immigration enforcement funding for ICE and CBP. Then Senator Schumer reneged. The result was lengthy and unnecessary government shutdowns as we tried to find a new bipartisan path forward. But every time we thought we had an agreement, congressional Democrats moved the goalposts. Finally, we reluctantly accepted the obvious conclusion: they were never going to vote for ANY funding for border security and immigration enforcement. They were just stalling. So we had no choice but to get the job done without Democrat votes. Today we did. And instead of funding just the next year, we fully funded the next THREE years, so Democrat leaders cannot again try to defund border security or immigration enforcement during the remainder of President Trump's term in office. We said we are going to secure our border and enforce our immigration laws, and we meant it.