Hello,

Welcome to “Kansas Common Sense.” I hope you and your family are enjoying this holiday season. Robba and I enjoyed a peaceful Christmas with our family and we wish you and yours a very Happy New Year. In January, my colleagues and I return to Capitol Hill and I am hopeful 2016 will be a year where Congress can work together for the well-being of our nation. I look forward to advocating for pro-growth policies that create jobs and more economic opportunity for every American, while protecting the freedoms guaranteed by our Constitution.

Thank you for your continued interest in receiving my weekly newsletter. Please feel free to forward it on to your family and friends if it would interest them.

Kansas Listening Tour Continues
This week, I continued my Kansas Listening Tour and kicked off the last of several stops around Kansas I’ll be making in 2015 with a visit to Barnes. It was good to be in Washington County rather than Washington, D.C. The issues I focus on and work I do in Washington are significantly based on the conversations I have with Kansans. I have several more visits scheduled after Christmas including stops in Udall, Wellington, Clearwater, Haven, Hillsboro and Hill City. You can visit my website to learn more about these and other upcoming Kansas Listening Tour stops in your community. I hope you’ll come out and visit with me.

On Monday, I headed Barnes, where around 30 town hall attendees came to Our Daily Bread Bake Shoppe to share concerns on a number of topics including the veterans’ health care, the farm economy, gun control, and the recent omnibus spending legislation. Thanks again to all the folks who came out and shared a dose of Kansas common sense, and to the folks at Our Daily Bread Bake Shoppe for coordinating and hosting my visit.

Celebrating the Life of Bob Krause
Last Monday, Robba and I attended funeral services for Bob Krause who will be remembered for his more than 20 years of leadership at KansState University. Bob’s efforts to attract new development projects like the National Bio and Agro-Defense Facility to K-State will have a lasting impact on not only the university, but also the Manhattan community and state of Kansas for years to come. Especially during this holiday season, we're keeping his wife Marty and their daughters in our thoughts and prayers. 

Thanks to Fall/Winter 2015 Interns
My own interest in public service was sparked by an internship for Kansas First District Congressman Keith Sebelius in 1974. As an intern, I had the chance to learn firsthand how a Congressional office operates and how the legislative process works.

I am proud to be able to offer this same opportunity in my Senate office today where I have interns year-round who have a unique opportunity to work closely with my staff on behalf of Kansas. Thanks to the fall/winter 2015 interns — Drake Williams of Overland Park; University of Kansas, and Rachel Gordon of Phillipsburg; Pepperdine University — for all of your hard work. I wish you the best of luck as you pursue your dreams and begin your careers.

Applications are already being accepted for internships in my Washington, D.C., office for the summer 2016 term. Congressional internships are open to qualified undergraduate and graduate students who have an interest in public service and have achieved academic excellence.

Senate Incoming Email Disruption
On Tuesday, December 22, several incoming emails failed to reach my office due to a Senate power outage. Your thoughts and concerns are very important to me. If you tried to email my office,  subscribe to this newsletter, or have yourself removed from our outreach list on the morning of Dec. 22, please resubmit your request.

Honored to Serve You in Washington
It is an honor to serve you in Washington, D.C. Thank you to the many Kansans who have been calling and writing in to share their thoughts and opinions on the issues our state and country face. I appreciate the words of Kansans, whether in the form of a form of letter, a Facebook comment or a phone call, who wish to make their voice heard.

Please let me know how I can be of assistance. You can contact me by email by clicking here. You can also click here to contact me through one of my Kansas offices or my Washington, D.C., office.

Very truly yours,

Jerry