Newly elected GOP Congressman Derek Schmidt told Fox News Digital that DOGE’s efforts will be critical in the next Congress and explained why he is optimistic that Republicans will be on the same page in January to push through That of President-elect Trump agenda.
“It’s not ‘business as usual’ anymore,” Schmidt, who was elected in November to represent Kansas’ 2nd Congressional District, told Fox News about the impact of the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency led by Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy as the two lobbied against a 1,500-page continuing resolution being debated in the House of Representatives and opposed by some conservatives as containing too much “pork.”
‘Look, that was the most important message from voters last November. They want us to make progress on some of these issues, and we won’t make progress by doing the same things and expecting a different outcome. So you know, it’s going to be messy. It will be tumultuous, but that is what it will take to get this country back on track.”
Schmidt told Fox News Digital that DOGE reforms are part of what Trump started with.
‘NO CHOICE’: DOGE LEADERS RALLY HOUSE CONSERVATIVES AGAINST 1,500+ PAGE ‘PORK FEST’
Former Kansas AG Derek Schmidt will represent Kansas’ 2nd District in Congress in January (Getty Images)
“That’s what President Trump promised. That’s what many of us have set out to do. And that is what I certainly intend to achieve,” Schmidt said.
“So anything that helps put the genie back in the bottle, that helps us move back toward this, you know, this federal system, this remarkable system of self-government that our founders gave us and that we’ve come so far drifting away I want to leave this country better for my children than I found it, and that won’t be true if we don’t start to get a handle on the runaway federal spending on the vast, grotesque federal bureaucracy that is unaccountable to the voters.”
Despite a net loss of two seats in the 435-member House of Representatives in November, Republicans will retain a fragile 220-215 majority when the new Congress convenes next month, giving them a razor-thin margin for error as they try to advance Trump’s agenda to help move forward.
Schmidt told Fox News Digital that he expects some “disunity” in the next Congress, which he called “the nature of democratic self-government,” but says he is confident Republicans will unite on the big issues.
“I think we’re going to have the president’s agenda passed, look, I think a few things are true. One, to the extent that I have met my fellow incoming class members in the House and to the extent that I After talking to current members of the House of Representatives, there seems to be a broad sense that everyone knows that we have something to deliver,” said Schmidt, who served as Kansas attorney general for more than a decade.
“We have this so-called trifecta that the voters gave us. They have trusted us to do what we said we were going to do, and everyone, even though they may have different differences, understands that we have to deliver, and that means finding ways to stick together.”
Current Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt delivers his ‘Stump’ speech during the Governor’s Debate at the Kansas State Fair, Hutchinson, Kansas, September 8, 2018
Schmidt continued, “Number two. What’s different now than, you know, a few times in the past when things were aligned, is that we have a strong Republican president. President Trump was undeterred. He was very clear on the campaign trail in the direction he wants to take over the country, the kind of policies he wants to implement, and the voters approve of that, not just with a win in the Electoral College, not just with a win for him in the popular vote , but also with the trifecta to help deliver so we don’t have to figure out what the agenda is. We need to listen to what voters said when they elected President Trump, what he expressed on behalf of the voter. And we have to stand up, stay together and get results. “
After winning both the Electoral College and the popular vote, Schmidt told Fox News Digital that it is clear that Trump has a “mandate” from the American people and that Republicans in the House of Representatives understand that gridlock in Congress will not be something that voters will be satisfied with are.
“I think the voters knew what they were choosing, and they made that decision, and I also think it’s very important, you know, to stay in line with what I think was the most important message, which is: do something, make progress on these issues. ‘, says Schmidt.
“If we don’t like the electorate, if we don’t like what you’ve done, we’ll judge that in two years, four, six years. But do something. This kind of deadlock that accomplishes very little is an unacceptable way to run the greatest nation on earth. And so I think that this sentiment is quite widely accepted among at least most of us who hold public office, and we have a spirit of let’s come together and take action.
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President-elect Donald Trump speaks during a press conference at Mar-a-Lago, Monday, December 16, 2024, in Palm Beach, Florida. (AP/Evan Vucci)
Fox News Digital asked Schmidt what he’s most looking forward to while in Congress, and he outlined his excitement about participating in what he called the “extraordinary experiment” of American governance.
“I don’t mean to sound like Mr. Smith is going to Washington, but there is some truth in the idea that any of us who get to represent a group of Americans have the opportunity to be part of this extraordinary experiment in self-government that is still ongoing despite all its warts and imperfections,” Schmidt said.
“Many people who came before us paid a high price at great personal cost to build this country into what it is today. We have an opportunity, those of us who serve, myself included, to be part of rewriting or writing the next chapter in the American story. And that gets me excited every morning. No matter where my time in public office ends, whether it’s two years from now, ten years from now, or somewhere down the line, I want to be able to look back and say, I created something. difference. I left America better than I found it. And so few people have that opportunity and in a direct way, I will never lose sight of what has been entrusted to me.”
Paul Steinhauser of Fox News Digital contributed to this report
