Monday, May 01, 2006
Republican Tancredo stakes out firm position on immigration
Potential 2008 Republican Presidential candidate Tom Tancredo has placed his bet on which side of the immigration issue serves him best. In statements on Monday, Tancredo expressed his gratitude to the May 1 immigrant demonstrations, saying that they served to turn more and more people "...against the protesters and whatever it is they are trying to advance".
Tancredo then went on to taunt the protestors over their less-than-promised turnout,"I think 50,000 people protested in Denver, Colorado. Remember, when the Broncos won the SuperBowl in 1998 there were 600,000 people in the streets."
A clearly carefully-timed Tancredo-penned editorial appeared on the conservative website National Review Online on Monday as well, removing any doubt as to where Tancredo stands on illegal immigration. His editorial outlines all the negative aspects of illegal immigration, apparently to offset any positive coverage resulting from the May 1 marches.
The Colorado congressman has come to the conclusion that his best strategy is to stake out the right political margin on this issue, and perhaps for his district he's right. No doubt the message will play to a certain segment of Iowa and New Hampshire as well, though you'd expect it would come at a cost in areas where Republicans had been making strides with latino voters, such as Florida, Texas, and even California.
On the other hand, it does allow other Republicans to stake out a more middle of the road territory, while still being against illegal immigration. In comparison, they will seem moderate as Tancredo shifts the edge further to the right.
Could Tancredo be the Pat Buchanan of '08? His association with Pat's sister Bay Buchanan may not be entirely coincidental...
The "Team America PAC" name may not be the best-advised, given what another set of Coloradans have done with the Team America concept.
Tancredo then went on to taunt the protestors over their less-than-promised turnout,"I think 50,000 people protested in Denver, Colorado. Remember, when the Broncos won the SuperBowl in 1998 there were 600,000 people in the streets."
A clearly carefully-timed Tancredo-penned editorial appeared on the conservative website National Review Online on Monday as well, removing any doubt as to where Tancredo stands on illegal immigration. His editorial outlines all the negative aspects of illegal immigration, apparently to offset any positive coverage resulting from the May 1 marches.
The Colorado congressman has come to the conclusion that his best strategy is to stake out the right political margin on this issue, and perhaps for his district he's right. No doubt the message will play to a certain segment of Iowa and New Hampshire as well, though you'd expect it would come at a cost in areas where Republicans had been making strides with latino voters, such as Florida, Texas, and even California.
On the other hand, it does allow other Republicans to stake out a more middle of the road territory, while still being against illegal immigration. In comparison, they will seem moderate as Tancredo shifts the edge further to the right.
Could Tancredo be the Pat Buchanan of '08? His association with Pat's sister Bay Buchanan may not be entirely coincidental...
The "Team America PAC" name may not be the best-advised, given what another set of Coloradans have done with the Team America concept.
Tom Tancredo | Colorado | Immigration | Campaign News | 2008 Election
# posted @ 9:05 PM 
