U.S. Senator Roger Marshall of Kansas appeared on NewsNation’s The Hill Sunday to discuss the Republican reconciliation bill, which is set for a Senate vote early Monday. Marshall addressed recent rumors and outlined key elements of the legislation.
Marshall credited several political figures for their roles in advancing the bill. “Well, I think if it weren’t for President Trump and John Thune and John Barrasso, [it] would be next to impossible. Vice President also came in and got involved as well, JD Vance. So, I think it’s constantly listening, it’s pushing, it’s the art of the deal. Both sides are saying they’re unhappy – we’re probably right over the target.”
He emphasized commitments from both the White House and congressional leadership to continue working on fiscal issues beyond this bill. “Look, I think we have significant commitments from the White House and from leadership to continue to address this. Look, I actually think this bill will help shrink the debt. I think it’s going to grow the economy so much, just like it did under President Kennedy, President Reagan, President Clinton, and then again, under President Trump 45. I think it’ll grow the economy, shrink the debt. This is phase one. It’s not the end-all; we have a lot of work to do.
“I think what your listeners need to understand … is we’re extending this debt limit. If we don’t do that, it could help, it would hurt us, or on our debt, our bond rating. And number three is the Democrats will extract a pound of flesh to give that to us, because whoever’s in power gets blamed for it, right?”
When asked about potential changes to cuts described as ‘unpopular,’ Marshall said he expects most provisions will remain intact: “I don’t. I think that’s only affecting one person. There are too many great things in this bill to vote for. We’re going to prevent the largest tax increase in history – this is the extension of President Trump’s legacy. If you supported President Trump, you should support this bill. We voted for him to secure the border. He’s going to run out of money soon. This bill is going to fund border security for four years, 2000 miles of barriers along with it, and tax cuts for everybody. This will mean $1,000 a month to hard-working Kansans back home.”
Marshall also discussed Medicaid funding within the legislation: “I’m not sure there’s ever a good time to cut anything up here. But I want to emphasize, we’re not cutting spending. We are actually increasing spending on Medicaid over the next years, at a rate higher than inflation. We’re gonna end up spending $200 billion more per year than what we are right now. We’re going to protect and preserve it for those who need it the most, for seniors in nursing homes, for people with disabilities, pregnant women, and children. So we need to protect and preserve it – make it financially solvent.
“But I’m so proud of what we did on this bill, $25 billion for rural hospitals and community health centers. Look, only 5% of Medicaid dollars end up in rural hospitals – the urban hospitals take 95% of that money. So we have $25 billion to help make those rule hospitals solvent. I think it’s an incredible solution. I compliment Susan Collins and Rick Scott on their work on that as well. They’ve done a great job helping get that across the finish line.”
He pointed out specific benefits for Kansas residents: “Look, you need to laser focus the message here. What you didn’t show is that if you address these one title at a time, it actually polls positively. So you need to go back home – I’m talking to union workers in Wichita, I talk about no tax on overtime. If I’m talking to farmers there’s this 199A pass-through crop insurance 45Z So you have tailor your message if you do them one at a time.
“Talking to hardcore conservatives like me we talk about President Trump’s legacy that we’re securing border The left media has done an incredible job labeling this bill bad Trump bad bill bad but what we have do focus real message here how much this going help Americans This start new golden era Americans”
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