Kyle Rittenhouse Has Become Politically Active Since Killing Two Protesters

If you look up the definition of infamy in the dictionary, Kyle Rittenhouse's face may come up. The 17-year-old shot to national prominence after he killed two protesters in Kenosha, Wisc. in 2020. Kyle was eventually acquitted for those killings after it was determined that he was acting in self-defense (even though he showed up to the protest with a gun).

Now, four years after those killings, many want to know what Kyle Rittenhouse has been up to more recently. He's become politically engaged even though he couldn't legally vote when he became a national figure. Here's what he's been up to.

Kyle has become incredibly politically active in the years since the shooting occurred. He has railed against gun control legislation in Texas, and has also become active in right-wing politics in the state. In 2023, he launched a non-profit called The Rittenhouse Foundation that “protects human and civil rights secured by law, including an individual’s inalienable right to bear arms” and “ensures the Second Amendment is preserved through education and legal assistance.”

Kyle first moved to Texas in 2022 following his acquittal and steadily stepped up his political engagement in the state. He joined Texas Gun Rights in opposing a bill that would have raised the minimum age to purchase semi-automatic rifles from 18 to 21. He's also endorsed insurrectionist candidates for local offices, including primary challengers throughout Texas.

In 2022, Kyle claimed that he was planning to attend Texas A&M University, but had to walk back the announcement after Texas A&M revealed that he had not been accepted. Kyle then said that he was planning to attend Blinn College, a two-year school, but it's unclear whether he's actually attending the school or not.

Although Kyle remains involved in government, his lawyer Mark Richards claims that Kyle is not as well off as his public profile might make it seem.

“He is working, he is trying to support himself. Everybody thinks that Kyle got so much money from this. Whatever money he did get is gone,” Mark told CourtTV in 2023.

“He’s living, I don’t want to say paycheck to paycheck, but he’s living to support himself. Obviously, as his lawyer and somebody who I want to do well, I hope he does re-engage in his studies," Mark added. “But right now he is working full-time, he is living a law-abiding life and he is doing something that he enjoys.”

Kyle has been open about his financial situation, even appearing in various right-wing media to ask for donations to his legal fund.

While Kyle was acquitted in his criminal trial, he is facing civil litigation and wrongful death lawsuits from the families of Jonathan Rosenbaum and Anthony Huber, the two men he killed. Kyle has raised more than $250,000 to fight those lawsuits in court, but it doesn't seem to be enough for a lavish lifestyle. He may be well known, but right now, Kyle is not rich.