{"id":97602,"date":"2016-05-29T10:06:15","date_gmt":"2016-05-29T18:06:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.lukeford.net\/blog\/?p=97602"},"modified":"2016-05-29T10:06:57","modified_gmt":"2016-05-29T18:06:57","slug":"far-right-nativists-eye-kris-kobach-for-donald-trumps-vice-president","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lukeford.net\/blog\/?p=97602","title":{"rendered":"Far-right nativists eye Kris Kobach for Donald Trump\u2019s vice president"},"content":{"rendered":"

MSNBC<\/a>: Far-right Donald Trump supporters are eyeing Kris Kobach, an immigration hardliner and a leading figure in the Republican assault on voting rights, as a potential running mate for the presumptive GOP nominee.<\/p>\n

The two appear to have similar worldviews. For decades, most modern Republicans have talked about the need to shrink government in order to protect liberty. By contrast, Trump and Kobach are more likely to emphasize \u201csecurity\u201d \u2013 both on the border and at the polls. Call it big-government conservatism.<\/p>\n

Kobach, the Kansas secretary of state, endorsed Trump in late February. And last month Kobach said Trump\u2019s idea for getting Mexico to pay for a border wall came from him. The plan involves cutting off remittances from the U.S. to Mexico, which inject about $20 billion a year into the Mexican economy. In response, goes the thinking, Mexico would agree to fund the wall, which is projected to cost about $10 billion, as the cheaper option.<\/p>\n

\u201cMr. Trump was receptive to that idea. And I think he\u2019s an excellent negotiator, and he looks for opportunities to put pressure on opposing parties in negotiations, and this fits the bill,\u201d Kobach told<\/a> the Topeka Capitol-Journal.<\/span><\/p>\n

Experts have said<\/a> the idea would only drive remittances onto the black market and could needlessly alienate an important regional partner.<\/p>\n

The nativist website VDARE.com has promoted Kobach as a veep selection for Trump. Peter Brimelow, the site\u2019s founder, called<\/a> Kobach\u2019s endorsement of Trump \u201ca very brave move,\u201d adding: \u201cKobach for veep.\u201d The Southern Poverty Law Center describes<\/a> VDARE, which has regularly published writing by white nationalists and anti-Semites, as a hate group. It’s named for Virginia Dare, said to be the first English child born in the New World.<\/p>\n

In March, Kobach served as a de facto surrogate for Trump in an interview with PBS, in which he appeared alongside Marco Rubio supporter Henry Barbour. Kobach praised Trump for \u201ctaking the strongest position that we\u2019ve ever heard a presidential candidate take on illegal immigration\u201d and attacked Rubio as a supporter of \u201camnesty.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

The performance drew raves from VDARE. \u201cIn a GOP party that was living up to its professed principles, people like Kobach, and not Barbour, would be running things,\u201d a writer for the site enthused<\/a>, describing Kobach as \u201ca stalwart warrior against the illegal immigrant invasion.\u201d The post also appeared<\/a> at the neo-Nazi site The Daily Stormer, whose founder has endorsed Trump.<\/span><\/p>\n

Last week, the vice presidential speculation went more mainstream with a tweet from Mickey Kaus, a former writer for The New Republic and Slate who has adopted an increasingly hard line on immigration.<\/span><\/p>\n

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I hear KA SofS Kris Kobach is on Trump VP list. So strong on immigration he’s both anti-sellout insurance & anti-impeachment insurance #tcot<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Mickey Kaus (@kausmickey) May 19, 2016<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n