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Rep. Tom Tancredo says his fight against illegal immigration has been taken up by others trying to "out-Tancredo Tancredo." (Post / Helen H. Richardson) | |
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Washington - Immigration hard-liner Tom Tancredo's presidential campaign might be over before it begins.
The Republican congressman from Littleton, who for more than a year has flirted with a presidential run in 2008 to force debate on illegal immigration, said Wednesday that his work largely is done.
The issue is dominating national politics and popping up in state races. Hundreds of thousands of protesters have gathered in U.S. cities. And presidential contenders who had avoided the issue have defined their positions.
"I get the feeling that I will not have to do this," Tancredo said of the presidential bid. "This issue, it's got legs, and they're not necessarily mine anymore."
Though he has long joked that he had no chance of actually winning the presidential nomination, Tancredo dangled a run as his way of forcing candidates to address what he calls the nation's catastrophically porous borders.
He didn't completely rule out that presidential run, but Tancredo is acting less and less like a potential presidential contender.
Between January and November last year, he visited the key presidential nomination states of New Hampshire, Iowa and South Carolina a total of 17 times. But this week, while Congress is halfway into a two-week break and many presidential hopefuls are swinging through those states, Tancredo is in Colorado and has no plans to visit those states in the near future.
"Right now I do not have any plane ticket," he said.
He's not taken any of the steps needed to build political capital with primary voters, such as holding fundraisers for local candidates or donating money to local campaigns, said Tom Rath, a Republican strategist in New Hampshire.
First elected to the House in 1998, Tancredo made immigration reform his top issue. As the issue mushroomed in the public's awareness, Tancredo became the national spokesman for those who want to stop illegal immigration.
Now, he says, other lawmakers are battling to take over his role - or, as he puts it, "out-Tancredo Tancredo."
Asked 18 months ago about immigration as an issue, New Hampshire's Rath said it wasn't important to that state's voters. Now, he said, it's
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In Idaho and Iowa, immigration is an issue in U.S. House primary races, said Amy Walter, senior editor at the Cook Political Report. "This is an issue that has taken on a life of its own," she said.
Tancredo said that if he doesn't run for president, he'll still be involved.
"I wouldn't mind being on the road trying to ... make sure people who are the worst on it don't do well," he said. "There are candidates I would actively campaign against."
The news that Tancredo might not run for president generated distress from his supporters.
"It would be hard to influence the contenders if you're not one of them," said Rosemary Jenkins, director of government relations for NumbersUSA, which wants cuts in legal and illegal immigration. "It's really hard to drive their conversation from the outside."
Those opposed to Tancredo's position said he's always been marginal. If Congress passes immigration reform, the issue won't be a part of the presidential race, said Tamar Jacoby, senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute and a conservative advocate for a guest-worker program. Even if Congress doesn't pass reform, she said, people don't vote for president based on immigration issues.
Asked if he's going to run for re-election in the House, then seek the U.S. Senate in 2008 if Sen. Wayne Allard bows out, Tancredo said, "Yeah, yeah."
"Right now I'm running for the House. I've got a primary (election)," he said. "I'm going to take it one step at a time."