A good leader stays and listens

Friends,

Just a few days ago, I held a public town hall in Oakley, Kansas — a rural town of approximately 2,000 people.

Oakley is where — 607 days ago — Sen. Roger Marshall walked out of the town hall he was holding. He ended the event early after calling the crowd one of the rudest audiences he’d ever had.

After that, he said town halls had become “nonproductive” and “dangerous.” He hasn’t held one since.

Friends, Sen. Marshall is just plain wrong. Talking to Kansans isn’t dangerous or nonproductive. In fact, Kansans deserve a senator who stays and listens to them. We don’t always have to agree with each other — and in fact, the people at that town hall and I didn’t agree on everything. But I stayed, and I listened.

I opened my heart to the farmers worried about the cost of diesel and fertilizer. To the parents trying to figure out how they’ll pay for healthcare. To the neighbors looking out for families struggling to put food on the table.

And then, we had an honest conversation about how I’ll fight for them in Washington.

The people in the crowd gave up part of their weekend to come to their town hall, and they brought their questions with them. And friends, nothing about that crowd was dangerous, and talking to them was the most productive thing I could be doing. How else would I know what issues are concerning them? How else would I know what problems they need help solving?

Sen. Marshall seems to have forgotten this, but a leader’s job is to fight for the people they were elected to represent … and you can’t represent people who never see you.

When he called talking to Kansans dangerous and nonproductive, he made it crystal clear he has no intention of putting his constituents over his party or his politics. He has no intention of listening to them, thinking about how to solve their problems or courageously fighting to implement those solutions.

Instead, he’s turned his back on the people he was elected to represent — and it shows. If he were willing to listen to Kansans, he might not have voted multiple times to keep us in the war that’s driving up diesel and fertilizer prices. He might not have backed the tariffs that are costing Kansas families hundreds of dollars every month. He might not have rubber-stamped slashing the healthcare assistance that thousands of Kansans rely on.

He might be willing to stand up and say “no more” to the corrupt and chaotic policies coming out of Washington.

But he isn’t willing to listen to Kansans. That’s why we MUST WIN this race.

Kansans deserve an independent-minded leader who is focused on being a true champion for them — not for corporate PACs or party bosses. But with just five days to go until Election Day, Roger Marshall’s allies are flooding the airwaves with attack ads to turn voters against me. We have to fight back — which is why my team and I have set an ambitious $3 million end-of-month goal so we can get our ads into every living room in Kansas, make sure every voter knows what’s at stake in this election and FLIP this seat.

Please, time is running out. Will you chip in whatever you can to help us reach our goal, fight back against Marshall’s attacks and get every supporter out to the polls?

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The people of Kansas are ready for a leader who will listen. With your help, we can give them one.

Thank you,

Adam Hamilton