Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, Trump's voter ID czar, moonlights as a paid Breitbart columnist

(Image credit: Drew Angerer/Getty Images)

Kris Kobach is a busy man. Along with his duties as the Kansas secretary of state and head of President Trump's "election integrity" commission, Kobach is running for governor of Kansas, operates a private-sector law firm on the side, and recently signed on as a regular columnist for Breitbart News, the site published once again by Trump's former chief strategist (and current phone confidante) Stephen Bannon. So far he has published seven articles on Breitbart, four of them about immigration policy, and each includes a link to his campaign website.

"I think Breitbart.com appeals to anyone who is Republican or conservative in any way," Kobach told The Kansas City Star, disputing the characterization of the site as catering to white nationalists and the so-called alt-right — a claim made by, among others, its former editor at large, Ben Shapiro. "I get paid for my columns," Kobach told the Star's Bryan Lowry, "just like you're paid," and he said he usually writes his columns after dinner. He has resisted calls to disclose his tax returns or say where his outside income comes from.

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Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.