{"database": "press", "table": "releases", "rows": [["https://davids.house.gov/media/press-releases/icymi-davids-pens-essay-lowering-costs-fighting-extremism-put-kansans-first", "ICYMI: Davids Pens Essay on Lowering Costs, Fighting Extremism to Put Kansans First", "2025-09-10", "2025", "2025-09", "Democrat", "House", "KS", "Sharice Davids", "D000629", "davids.house.gov", "davids", "https://davids.house.gov/media/press-releases", "scraper", "This morning, Representative Sharice Davids (KS-03) published an opinion piece in the Kansas City Star highlighting the challenges Kansas families face with rising costs and the harmful impact of extreme politicians\u2019 priorities in Washington. Davids also underscored her recent work across the aisle to deliver solutions that lower costs and strengthen Kansas communities.\n\nKey Excerpts:\n\n\u201cEverywhere I go in our community, I hear the same thing: families are stretched thin. From groceries to health care to housing, the cost of living has gone up, and people are working harder than ever just to make ends meet.\u201d\n\n\u201cUnfortunately, instead of tackling rising costs, extreme politicians in Washington, including President Trump, are making things worse. Their latest budget raises health care costs and threatens emergency food assistance for our kids \u2014 all to funnel tax breaks to billionaires and special interests.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat\u2019s why I\u2019ve worked with both Democrats and Republicans to pass laws that actually help Kansans. I fought to cap the cost of insulin at $35 a month for seniors. I passed bipartisan legislation to rebuild our roads, bridges, and water systems.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe challenges we face are real, but so is our ability to overcome them \u2014 if we have leaders who put people first. Kansans deserve nothing less.\u201d\n\nIn the piece, Davids shares her personal story, her mom\u2019s service as an Army veteran and postal worker, and her commitment to ensuring hardworking Kansans get a fair shot. She has consistently focused on working with both parties to lower health care costs, protect Social Security, support Kansas farmers and workers, invest in local infrastructure, and more. She has also passed multiple bipartisan bills this year, even under Republican control of Washington.\n\nRead the full essay in the Kansas City Star here or below:\n\nEverywhere I go in our community, I hear the same thing: families are stretched thin. From groceries to health care to housing, the cost of living has gone up, and people are working harder than ever just to make ends meet.\n\nI know what that feels like. I was raised by a single mom \u2014 a proud Army veteran who went on to work at the U.S. Postal Service. She worked long hours, sometimes juggling more than one job, to keep our family afloat.\n\nThat experience shaped me. I later worked multiple jobs to get through college, and I'm still paying off my student loans. Now, I wake up every day determined to fight for Kansans who feel like the deck is stacked against them.\n\nUnfortunately, instead of tackling rising costs, extreme politicians in Washington, including President Trump, are making things worse. Their latest budget raises health care costs and threatens emergency food assistance for our kids \u2014 all to funnel tax breaks to billionaires and special interests.\n\nHere in Kansas, we\u2019re already seeing the consequences: rural hospitals on the brink of closing, family farms squeezed by reckless trade policies, and parents worried about affording child care. That\u2019s not leadership \u2014 it\u2019s politics at the expense of hardworking Kansans.\n\nEach August, Members of Congress spend an extended time back home, and for me, it\u2019s the best part of this job because I get to spend most of my time listening. These conversations show me what\u2019s working, what isn\u2019t, and what more I can do to help hardworking Kansans.\n\nLast month, I saw how the big debates in Washington translate into real impacts here at home.\n\nFamilies of children with disabilities and rural health leaders alike reminded me that Medicaid cuts aren\u2019t abstract \u2014 they\u2019re life-and-death decisions that put patients and entire communities at risk.\n\nSeniors I joined at a Social Security 90th anniversary celebration spoke about how essential that program is to their retirement security \u2014 and how anxious they are about constant threats to cut it.\n\nI also heard from workers at a local manufacturer about how reckless tariffs continue to raise their costs and strain operations, while Kansas farmers worry about unstable markets that threaten their livelihoods.\n\nAt a Head Start program, I sat with kids and teachers who reminded me how crucial affordable early childhood education is for parents\u2019 ability to keep working and put food on the table.\n\nAnd on a supply chain tour, from family farms to local grocery stores, I saw the power of investing in our local food system to lower grocery prices and strengthen our communities.\n\nAll of these conversations brought home one point: Kansans need leaders who are focused on solving problems, not creating them.\n\nThat means lowering prescription drug costs, expanding access to affordable health care, investing in good-paying jobs, protecting Social Security, and making child care more affordable \u2014 not raising costs through shortsighted budgets and political power plays.\n\nThat\u2019s why I\u2019ve worked with both Democrats and Republicans to pass laws that actually help Kansans. I fought to cap the cost of insulin at $35 a month for seniors. I passed bipartisan legislation to rebuild our roads, bridges, and water systems.\n\nAnd I\u2019ll keep working across the aisle whenever I can. Even in a Republican-controlled Washington, I\u2019ve passed multiple bipartisan bills this year. Kansans can\u2019t afford inaction or political gamesmanship.\n\nI don\u2019t pretend to have all the answers. But I know this: all Kansans deserves a fair shot, no matter where they live or what challenges they face. That\u2019s the promise my mom fought for in the Army and lives out every day. And it\u2019s the promise I\u2019ll keep fighting for in Congress.\n\nThe challenges we face are real, but so is our ability to overcome them \u2014 if we have leaders who put people first. Kansans deserve nothing less.", 1, "2026-03-30T01:40:41Z", "2026-04-06T19:10:29Z"]], "columns": ["url", "title", "date", "year", "month", "party", "chamber", "state", "member_name", "bioguide_id", "domain", "scraper", "source", "date_source", "text", "has_text", "collected_at", "updated_at"], "primary_keys": ["url"], "primary_key_values": ["https://davids.house.gov/media/press-releases/icymi-davids-pens-essay-lowering-costs-fighting-extremism-put-kansans-first"], "units": {}, "query_ms": 2.0353018771857023, "source": "dwillis/congress-press", "source_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press", "license": "MIT", "license_url": "https://github.com/dwillis/congress-press/blob/main/LICENSE"}