Tom Tancredo

U.S. Representative Tom Tancredo

Thomas Gerard ("Tom") Tancredo (b. 1945) is a conservative Republican Congressman representing the suburbs of Denver who has been outspoken against illegal immigration. Often vilified by liberals and targeted for defeat, he was re-elected in 2006 in a landslide by the margin of 59%-40%.

Tancredo has a nearly 100% conservative voting record and has even criticized President George W. Bush over his immigration policy. Tancredo was one of 33 congressmen to vote against the 25-year extension of the Voting Rights Act, which, requires local government to print multilingual ballots at its own expense.

Tancredo is a declared candidate for the 2008 presidential race. He heavily campaigned in Iowa in an attempt to place high in the unofficial Iowa Straw Poll. In August 2007, fellow Republican presidential primary contestant Sam Brownback, attacked Tancredo for allegedly receiving money from the "founder of a Planned Parenthood network." The Tancredo campaign stated that they do not endorse funders values and that the allegations do not line up with Tancredo's consistent pro-life voting record and statements. Leading conservatives have asked Brownback to retract the claim, although he refuses.

Tancredo has attacked other fellow Republican presidential primary candidates, including Mitt Romney, Sam Brownback, Fred Thompson and Mike Huckabee. Former governor Mike Huckabee stated that Tancredo's ad claiming Huckabee held a pro-amnesty position was "blatantly dishonest", and that Tancredo's campaign either did sloppy research or deliberately mischaracterized his position.

In August, 2007, Tancredo suggested that bombing the cities of Mecca and Medina might be a useful deterrent to terrorism. These comments were criticized by the U.S. State Department and by other Republicans, such as Huckabee.

In August, 2007, Tancredo condemned the sanctuary city policy at city hall in Newark , New Jersey.

External Links

• Tancredo's Voting Record
• Official Campaign Website