Kris Kobach: The only choice for Homeland Security

Nominating Kris Kobach for secretary of the Department of Homeland Security should be a no-brainer. Donald Trump made opposition to uncontrolled and illegal immigration the centerpiece of his campaign. Kris Kobach understands the issue and endorsed Trump during the primaries because the “most important issue in the Republican presidential contest is immigration and its effect on our national security.”

Kobach’s qualifications are beyond reproach. He graduated top of his class from Harvard and went on to Oxford and Yale Law School. He then advised Attorney General John Ashcroft after 9/11 on national security and border control. After seeing, firsthand, how terrorists exploit our system, he became a leading legal expert on immigration. When the Bush and Obama administrations failed to enforce the law, Kobach helped write and defend tough state measures like Arizona’s S.B. 1070 and sued Obama’s DHS over its illegal executive amnesty. There is nobody better suited to help design and implement immigration control policies that will hold up to the inevitable frivolous lawsuits from the ACLU, MALDEF, and other Soros-funded legal outfits. The only criticisms against Kobach are the usual smears of racism and that he has limited Homeland Security experience outside immigration. Both of these are frivolous. No one can point to any anything Kobach has written or said that’s “racist” or “xenophobic.” Instead, people resort to calling enforcement of our immigration laws racist or resort to guilt by association. Donald Trump’s election showed that Americans are sick and tired of these baseless attacks. Republicans cannot give Media Matters and the Southern Poverty Law Center veto power over Trump’s picks. The last three DHS secretaries, Jeh Johnson, Janet Napolitano, and Michael Chertoff, had less experience dealing with Homeland Security than Kobach when they were nominated. Besides, immigration control is Homeland Security’s most important task, and no one doubts Kobach’s ability to learn and delegate the issues he may not have as much expertise on. Kobach stands shoulders above his competitors. Rudy Giuliani has supported amnesty, and New York City was a sanctuary city during his entire tenure as mayor, even after 9/11. Michael McCaul co-sponsored legislation with far-left Democrat Sheila Jackson Lee to reduce fencing on the U.S. Border and was one of only 19 Republicans to sign John Boehner’s pro-amnesty “Immigration Principles,” which would allow illegal aliens to “live legally and without fear in the U.S.” The immigration control group NumbersUSA gives an F grade for McCaul’s recent actions on Refugee and Asylum Fraud and a F- on Border Security. General John Kelly deserves credit for taking a strong stance on border security, but he has no track record or experience on any other aspect of immigration policy. I initially questioned whether Donald Trump would keep his campaign promises on immigration. I praised his statements but had seen far too many Republicans sound tough during campaigning and then sell out after the election. Thus far, he has exceeded my expectations with great picks like Steve Bannon and Jeff Sessions. But the secretary of Homeland Security is the most important position for immigration policy, and Trump cannot afford to take any chances with his pick. If Donald Trump wants to Make America Secure Again, Kris Kobach is the only man for the job. Tom Tancredo represented Colorado's 6th Congressional District from 1999 to 2009.