I’ve just got to take a minute and comment on Tom “Terrific” Tancredo’s request of Ron Paul.
Oh… you haven’t heard? Allow me to “esplain.”
Lew Rockwell is president of the libertarian Ludwig von Mises Institute and former Ron Paul congressional chief of staff, who now owns and operates a libertarian website and blog. Recently, in a series of “Open Letters,” one contributer wrote a letter to “Hispanics” in support of Paul. Mr. Arias’ and my political views diverge strongly in some of his points, [and I tend to agree more with Tancredo on his stances to these discrete issues] but that is the beauty of the Ron Paul Revolution: it’s a big tent, lots of camels.
Tommy-my-boy took offense to some of Arias’ statements and (rather disingenuously) set out to take Paul to task on these statements. Basically, he called Paul out, insisting that Paul own or disavow Arias’ statements.
I say “disingenuous” because, though I love Tancredo’s unwavering stance on the “National Question,” I think this sounds like a desperate attack from a little guy trying to claw his way on top of anything else. [That was not a shot at Tancredo's stature] That, and the fact that ol’ Tom’s done quite a bit of fra-shizzle with his I’m-a-bigger-hawk-than-you-are “Bomb Mecca” comments, which upset, apparently, some peeps who are fond of that one-horse camel town.
And asking the good doctor to defend or denounce his supporters’ First Amendment-protected beliefs is sorta silly; that’s what Paul’s campaign is all about, soup to nuts: live and let live. I mean, Neil Cavuto couldn’t get Paul to return Don Black’s $500: [NOTE: I have changed this link from the Stormfront website to the Wikipedia article on Don Black, so as to avoid promoting any of Mr. Black's less savory opinions]
[Anyway, $500 is only 0.0000027% of Paul's current take (that's about one quarter of one hundredth of one hundredth of one percent); no politician but maybe Rick Perry could be bought for so little]
This just in:
From the Associated Press:
Republican Rep. Tom Tancredo, whose forceful opposition to illegal immigration vaulted him to national prominence, plans to announce he is abandoning his long-shot bid for the presidency, a person close to Tancredo said Wednesday.
The five-term Colorado congressman planned to make the announcement at a news conference in Des Moines, Iowa, on Thursday, the person said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak for Tancredo or his campaign.
Tancredo’s campaign would only say he planned a “major announcement” Thursday.
So maybe he’ll just drop the “mea culpa” demand, and stop sniping from the sidelines. All the best, Mr Tancredo. Seriously.
UPDATE: Tancredo drops out, endorses Romney
In a mind-bending non-event, Tancredo explained thus:
It is with a heart full of gratitude and a touch of sadness that I write today to tell you of my intention to end my campaign for the presidency.
[...]
So with so much success why drop out of the race now, you are probably asking. For one reason and one reason alone: I believe the cause demands I do so.
The presidential campaign has come down to less than a handful of viable candidates. Unfortunately several of them have abysmal records on immigration and can’t be trusted to do what is needed to preserve this country if they’re elected. My fear is that if I were to stay in this race my votes could be the factor in handing victory to a pro-amnesty politician. Friends, we have done too much, come too far and the stakes are too high to play that hand. And so I am ending my presidential campaign.
[...]
We must continue to build the unquestioned momentum that is fueling our movement today. In the weeks ahead, I will write to you again to share with you my plans for the future, and for the immigration reform movement that is transforming American politics.
All in all, a stirring goodbye from a guy who fought the good fight, depending on your source. On illegal and mass legal immigration, anyway.
But wait, there’s more! From the Des Moines (IA) Register:
The Colorado Republican made his exit from the race official at a press conference this afternoon in downtown Des Moines. He’ll throw his support behind GOP candidate Mitt Romney, he said.
Did I say disingenuous before? I knew not whereof I spoke. Romney is far from the Ideal Candidate for the pro-border-enforcement crowd. That’s right, the guy who “dedicated the last decade of [his] life to ending illegal immigration,” signs on to support the one guy who’s actually admitted it’s okay to hire illegal aliens, as long as you do it through a contractor; the one candidate who can also claim the honor of having presided over a sanctuary state! Maybe Romney believes in immigration control like he believes in the Bible.
Perhaps, if you read between the lines, you’ll see the whole of the Register story:
The Colorado Republican [who has apparently lost lock on reality] made his exit from the race official at a press conference this afternoon in downtown Des Moines [before being rushed to NIH, for treatment for an obvious brain attack]. He’ll throw his support behind GOP candidate Mitt Romney [in hopes of garnering some lucrative, sinecure Romney Administration position], he said. [By way of explanation, he mentioned that he's never heard of the phrase "campaign promise" before, and has never actually met a politician.]
Unbe-freaking-lievable.
