Wichita lawmaker joining Trump administration ready to ‘make a couple people cry’

Wichita lawmaker Patrick Penn is trading in Topeka for Washington D.C. as a Trump administration appointee. He says he’s ready to “make a couple people cry” in his new job overseeing nutritional benefits programs.

On Wednesday, Penn promised to help weed out fraud in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, or SNAP, and the 15 other federal nutrition programs managed by the Department of Agriculture. School breakfasts and lunches are also among the programs he will help administer.

Penn will become deputy under secretary for food, nutrition and consumer services after he officially resigns his legislative seat on June 13.

His wife, Talia Penn, had sought to serve out the rest of his term in the Kansas House. But she was narrowly defeated 10-9 on the second ballot of Wednesday evening’s special election by Steve Brunk, a former state representative. Only Republican precinct committee people in House District 85 were allowed to vote.

After the vote-counting was done, Penn took to the podium to explain his new post, saying he was recruited by the Trump administration in February.

“We’re going to have some fun in D.C.,” Penn said. “We’re going to break a few eggs, make a few omelettes. Make a couple people cry, and that’s what we look forward to doing because America has to change.”

He asserted without any evidence that “billions and billions” of tax dollars are going to benefits for non-citizens and people “who are terrorists.” He also asserted that many able-bodied people are gaming the system to receive benefits they don’t qualify for.

According to a 2024 report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office, an estimated 11.7% — or about $10.5 billion — of SNAP benefits payments were made improperly in 2023, meaning they were for the wrong amount or otherwise should not have been made. Federal SNAP spending totaled $112.8 billion in 2023.

This spring, Penn voted for a bill that would have required Kansas to seek a waiver from USDA to prevent people from using SNAP to purchase candy and soda. Gov. Laura Kelly vetoed the bill, and although the Senate voted to override, the House did not take the matter back up and Kelly’s veto was sustained.

Penn said he wants to see the federal government take the initiative and place new restrictions on what underprivileged people can buy using benefits.

“I don’t want you to have to pay tax dollars to have people buy sugary drinks and sugary foods and have childhood diabetes and then have the same people on the left come to you and say, ‘Hey, you need to pay for their expanded Medicaid coverage so that they can pay for that diabetes treatment,’” Penn said.

Who’s replacing Patrick Penn?

Bel Aire Mayor Jim Benage and former Cox vice president Coleen Jennison each received one vote on the first ballot Wednesday before Brunk emerged victorious.

He will serve out the rest of Penn’s term in House District 85, which includes part of northeast Wichita, parts of Kechi and Bel Aire and a small portion of western Butler County.

Brunk was a member of the Kansas House from 2003-2016, leaving to take over as executive director of the Family Policy Alliance of Kansas, a social conservative advocacy group.

Brunk now runs his own real estate company and is a member of the City Elders of Kansas, a Christian group with chapters around the country that describes itself as “a network of elders charged with governing the gates of every city in America to establish the kingdom of God.”

He was endorsed by Attorney General Kris Kobach.

.

“There’s unfinished business in the state of Kansas, and I know how to get it done,” Brunk said.

He said he plans to support legislation next year expanding school choice options, most likely through a voucher program that would redirect state money spent on public schools.

He indicated that another high priority will be urging voters to support the ballot measure next August aiming to switch from a merit-based selection system to direct election of Kansas Supreme Court justices.

House Majority Leader Chris Croft, an Overland Park Republican who made the trek to Wichita for Wednesday’s special meeting, said Penn will be missed.

“It’s tough when they take our good ones. But that’s OK. That’s part of the deal,” Croft said. “We’ll train up the next one.”

Penn was raised in foster care. He went on to join the U.S. Army, serving tours in Iraq and Afghanistan before retiring in 2017 as a captain.

He was first elected to the Kansas House in 2020, ousting fellow Republican Michael Capps in the primary after Capps’ role in a political smear campaign against then-Wichita mayoral candidate Brandon Whipple came to light.

On Wednesday evening, Penn strode around the room in a red blazer shaking hands and accepting congratulations. He refused to acknowledge a reporter and gave no response to repeated questions about his new job responsibilities.

This story was originally published May 28, 2025 at 9:53 PM.