A former U.S. Attorney representing Kansas is running for the United States Senate being vacated by Pat Roberts. Barry Grissom made the announcement Monday.
“As the former U.S. Attorney for the District of Kansas, I’m grateful for the chance I had to serve our state, helping lead the investigation and successful prosecution against the Wichita Airport and Fort Riley bombers,” Grissom said.
“As a federal prosecutor, I’m proud that I was able to stand up for Western Kansas and work with local sheriffs and police to help drive the violent Norteños gang off the streets of Dodge City, and disarm felons throughout the region. Now I’m running for the United States Senate, because I know we can do more for our healthcare and rural hospitals, we can fight harder for good paying jobs and education, and we must continue to keep the American people safe.
“We face enormous challenges here in Kansas that are uniquely Kansan, and I’m running to make sure our concerns are heard in Washington.”
In 2010, Grissom was nominated to be the U.S. Attorney for Kansas and was unanimously confirmed by Democrats and Republicans in the U.S. Senate. He immediately went to work improving community relationships, increasing efficiencies for the taxpayers, and managing over 100 people in offices in Wichita, Topeka, and Kansas City, Kansas.
Grissom is best known for helping lead the investigation and successful prosecution of the Wichita Airport and the Fort Riley bombers – two domestic terrorists who had plotted to kill hundreds if not thousands of Americans.
As U.S. Attorney, Barry worked with law enforcement and civil rights advocates to improve community relations, founded Kansas’s first Human Trafficking Working Group, helped clean up gang activity, oversaw Kansas’s Project Safe Childhood program targeting child sex offenders and led the charge among federal authorities to break up a dogfighting ring responsible for capturing and abusing over 400 pit bulls.
In 2020, Kansas will elect a new U.S. Senator due to the announced retirement of current Senator Pat Roberts. The state of Kansas has only had three “open” U.S. Senate races in the past 40 years.
