Ken Cuccinelli: podcast appearances and interviews

Kenneth Thomas Cuccinelli II, born on July 30, 1968, is an American lawyer and politician who has served in various governmental roles. He was the senior official performing the duties of deputy secretary of homeland security from 2019 to 2021 and is affiliated with the Center for Renewing America. Cuccinelli previously held roles including principal deputy and acting director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, as well as attorney general of Virginia from 2010 to 2014. He also served in the Virginia Senate representing the 37th district in Fairfax County between 2002 and 2010.

Cuccinelli was the Republican nominee for Governor of Virginia in the 2013 election, but he lost to the Democratic candidate Terry McAuliffe. During his tenure as Virginia attorney general, he defended anti-sodomy laws and prohibitions on same-sex marriage. His policy positions include opposition to climate change scientific consensus and investigations into climate scientists accused of fraud. He is regarded as an immigration hard-liner, advocating policies such as prohibiting undocumented immigrants from attending universities, repealing birthright citizenship, and requiring employees to speak English in the workplace.

His appointments as acting USCIS director and acting deputy secretary of homeland security during the Trump administration were found unlawful by U.S. District Judge Randolph Moss and the Government Accountability Office, respectively, due to violations of the Federal Vacancies Reform Act of 1998.