I hardly know what to say about this. The incompetence, stupidity, and electoral malfeasance is simply beyond description.
But when ThinkProgress tried to ask two key Romney backers, who also helped organize a major gathering of Hispanic Republicans here, if they worried about Kobach, we ran into a problem — they didn’t even know who he was. At the Hispanic Leadership Network conference Friday, where Romney spoke earlier, we spoke with former Senator Norm Coleman and former Commerce Secretary Carlos Gutierrez, who have both endorsed Romney and who both helped organize the conference as chairman of its main sponsor and co-chair of the conference itself, respectively.
Asked if he thought that Kobach’s association with Romney could hurt the GOP frontrunner, Gutierrez replied, “I don’t know Kris Kobach, sorry.”
When asked the same question, Coleman stalled for a moment before telling us, “I don’t know Kobach, to be honest.” When told who he is, Coleman replied, “I have no idea.”
Here you have two key Romney backers organizing a major gathering of Hispanics for the purposes of campaigning, and they don't even know who Kris Kobach is or that Mitt Romney has heartily embraced him.
Kris Kobach, the author of Arizona's and Alabama's "Papers Please" anti-immigration law, is one of the most xenophobic and racist figures in conservative politics today and Team Romney has openly touted his endorsement.
“I’m so proud to earn Kris’s support,” said Mitt Romney. “Kris has been a true leader on securing our borders and stopping the flow of illegal immigration into this country. We need more conservative leaders like Kris willing to stand up for the rule of law. With Kris on the team, I look forward to working with him to take forceful steps to curtail illegal immigration and to support states like South Carolina and Arizona that are stepping forward to address this problem.”
Romney even spent Martin Luther King Day campaigning alongside Kobach in South Carolina.
I don't expect random people on the street to know who Kris Kobach is, but -- holy shit -- how can Coleman and Gutierrez be so clueless?
