by John Hawkins | July 27, 2010 10:59 am
Despite the fact that he has a disturbing tendency to go over-the-top and say dumb things on occasion, I have a great deal of respect for Tom Tancredo. Had Tanc not picked up the banner and led the charge on illegals early in the game, it’s entirely possible that comprehensive immigration reform would be the law of the land today. Yes, his early leadership on the issue was that important and, yes, he is unapologetically conservative.
However, what Tom Tancredo is doing in Colorado right now is serving his own ego, not the conservative cause[1],
Former Congressman Tom Tancredo is in the race for Colorado governor, he said this morning.
“I will officially announce at noon that I will seek the nomination of the constitution party,” Tancredo told The Denver Post.
The Littleton Republican must file some papers with the Colorado Secretary of State and register as a member of the American Constitution Party, but then “he’s ready to go,” raising money, disclosing his platform and launching a website that is already put together.
Tancredo gave Republican candidates Scott McInnis and Dan Maes an ultimatum last week: Promise to get out of the race after the primary if polls showed the winner lagging behind Democrat John Hickenlooper or else he would get in as a third-party candidate.
Both Maes and McInnis refused.
Tancredo’s entry into the race is likely to split the GOP vote in the general election, giving Hickenlooper a win, said Dick Wadhams, head of the state’s Republican Party.
Are Scott McInnis and Dan Maes great candidates? No, they’re not. Are either of them capable of winning? Yes, they are. The latest polling shows that the race is very tight[2].
So, if Tancredo gets in, what happens? The Republican vote is going to be split and a winnable race, along with Tom Tancredo’s reputation, go in the toilet.
Look at what Tancredo has already been reduced to in Colorado[3],
Leaders of 21 state Tea Party groups, representing about 10,000 people, said Sunday they have been betrayed by Tom Tancredo and in an open letter beseeched the former congressman not to run for governor as a third-party candidate.
…Tancredo said Sunday he received the letter and more than 100 separate e-mails. He called Tea Partyers new members of “the establishment.”
Asked about the letter he wrote to the grassroots’ groups in 2009, encouraging them to work together, he said, “it’s interesting that many of them chastised me at the time for encouraging party unity.
If Tom Tancredo wanted to be governor of Colorado, then he should have run in the Republican primary. It’s entirely possible he would have won[4] had he done so, which makes his decision to run now as a third party candidate even more bizarre. Running now will do nothing but help the Left and destroy his reputation. Tanc should know better and I genuinely hope he reconsiders.
Source URL: https://rightwingnews.com/election-2010/tom-tancredo-is-blowing-it-for-conservatives-in-colorado/
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