I grew up in El Dorado, the son of a pipefitter and a nurse. My wife’s from Wichita. We were raised with Kansas values: You do your job. You play by the rules. You support your family. And you look out for your neighbors.

Now we’re raising our two kids in Kechi — and our neighbors are scared. Because everyday costs like groceries and electricity are out of control, and you can’t afford to go to the doctor when something hurts. Property taxes have exploded, and we don’t get much of anything in return. The stuff that makes a good life feels farther out of reach every year.

And if we’re being honest, Kansans have been feeling this way for a long time. Nothing changes, and no one in power seems to do anything about it.

Why does nothing ever change? Because the entire system is rigged by money. A handful of people at the top are calling all the shots – and the rest of us get stuck with the bill.

Between 24 hour outrage news and algorithms designed to keep us glued to our phones, we’re too busy fighting each other while the price-gouging corporations and the politicians they fund get away with whatever they want and walk away richer time after time. Corporate profits are higher than ever and some people are even reaching trillionaire status — all while kids are starving and families can barely keep up, let alone get ahead.

This isn’t an accident. The system was built this way, and politicians from both parties let it happen. Because they care more about their bottom line than yours. Politicians like Senator Roger Marshall cash the checks, cast the votes, and then watch their stock portfolios climb, while the corporations that take advantage of working Americans post record profits. Their comfort has corrupted their leadership. And they’re wasting our tax dollars on themselves along the way.