Nathan Gonzales of the Rothenberg Report has a scoop that may well activate the salivary glands of every political satirist in America: Tom Tancredo is mulling a comeback.
That's right--America's favorite xenophobe is contemplating riding in on his trusty white steed to save the day:
Former GOP Rep. Tom Tancredo, who ran for the Republican presidential nomination in 2008 and is known nationally for leading the charge against illegal immigration, is seriously exploring a run for governor of Colorado as an Independent and will announce his intentions soon.
“We cannot win the governorship in the current environment,” Tancredo said in an interview with the Report on Wednesday, “The two Republican primary candidates are not electable.”
Of course, Tancredo wanting to make a gubernatorial bid, and actually getting to make such a bid are two entirely different things. The filing deadline for both partisan and Independent candidates in Colorado has long since passed. Therefore, the only way Tancredo finds his way onto the ballot is for an already filed candidate to stand down.
Tancredo, not often known for deep truisms, did make one in the interview. The two Republican candidates are both in dire straits, to be sure. Frontrunner Scott McInnis, a longtime congressman from the western part of the state, found his fortunes dashed by an embarrassing plagiarism scandal earlier in the month. McInnis' does have a primary challenger, but businessman Dan Maes is in a world of hurt all his own, as the release of his tax returns indicates that his entire campaign biography (as a successful entrepreneur eager to bring his private sector acumen to state government) might have been gloriously overstated.
There is no way that Tancredo can be the GOP nominee, however. Despite the fact that Republicans polled last week indicated that they were more comfortable with Tancredo as their standard bearer, and despite the fact that there has been considerable pressure for him to abort his campaign, McInnis has made it pretty clear that he will not stand down.
So, the only route that leaves Tancredo is the Independent/third party route. And though that is a longshot for logistical reasons, it is nonetheless delicious to contemplate.
And, it is a route he clearly does not regret. He noted that "I’m not doing it to the party, the party is doing it to itself."
Which, for those scoring at home, would be the second truism from Tancredo in this article.
That may well be a record.