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Kobach Holds Plan For DHS During Meeting With Trump

AP/File
President-elect Donald Trump and Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach.

Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach met with Donald Trump Sunday, and on Monday, reporters noticed a photo showing Kobach holding a plan for the Department of Homeland Security. That department has been rumored as one possible destination for Kobach if he joins the Trump administration.

The sheet of paper appears to outline potential policy proposals for DHS, including what it calls “extreme vetting” for immigrants from certain countries and construction of a border wall between the U.S. and Mexico. It also suggests blocking refugees from Syria.

The document also appears to reference potential amendments to the National Voter Registration Act of 1993. Kobach told KPR earlier this month that the Trump administration could push to amend that voting law. It has been used to challenge Kansas voter registration policies.

“I think it is conceivable that a Trump administration might say ‘let’s make sure that the courts are properly interpreting this act’ and they might consider some changes to it. I can see some tweaking of existing federal laws,” Kobach says.

Kansas Congressman Mike Pompeo has already been selected for a job in the Trump administration. Pompeo will head the CIA if the Senate confirms his appointment.

Washburn University Political Science Professor Bob Beatty says Kobach was an early Trump supporter, so it makes sense he might join the administration.

“I would think he’s going to be offered a job, it’s just a question of which job? If I had to put my money on it, I would guess he’s gone,” Beatty says.

Beatty says Kansas statewide politicians lean conservative and it appears so far that Trump is looking for conservative people for his administration.

Stephen Koranda is the managing editor of the Kansas News Service, based at KCUR. He has nearly 20 years of experience in public media as a reporter and editor.