Tom Tancredo has been a member of the United States House of Representatives since 1999, representing the 6th Congressional District of Colorado. He rose to national prominence for his strong stance against illegal immigration and his announcement that he was a Republican candidate in the 2008 Presidential election.  David Shankbone recently spoke with the Congressman and posed questions from Wikipedia editors and Wikinews reporters:
DS:  Throughout my life my father, a lifelong Republican and an avid listener of Rush Limbaugh, told me that all we needed in this country was a Republican Congress, Republican Senate and a Republican White House to get this country on the right track.  Last year he expressed his disappointment to me.  So many Republicans, like my father, feel lied to or let down by the party.  The rationale for the Iraq War, the sex and bribery scandals, the pork barrel projects, and, as Alan Greenspan recently pointed out, the fiscal irresponsibility.  People feel there have been many broken promises.  Why should someone vote Republican today?
DS:  You yourself said you would only serve three terms in Congress, but then broke that promise.  What caused you to reverse yourself?
DS:  There are an estimated 12 million illegal aliens in the U.S. To round up and deport millions of people would be a major government undertaking, requiring massive federal spending and invasive enforcement. What level of funding would be necessary for U.S. Immigration and Customs to achieve the level of enforcement that you'd like to see?
DS:  How long would full enforcement take for you to succeed?
DS:  Can you explain your remarks about bombing the Islamic holy sites of Mecca and Medina as a deterrent to terrorists operating against the United States.
DS:  But wouldn’t an attack on Mecca and Medina be an attack on a sovereign state?
DS:  Aside from becoming President, if you could be granted three wishes, what would they be?
DS:  Farmers rely heavily on seasonal manual labor. Strict enforcement of immigration laws will inevitably reduce the pool of migrant labor and thus increase costs. Do you support tariffs or other government intervention to keep American farm products competitive?
DS:  Do you agree that our forefathers intended birthright citizenship?  
DS:  You and Karl Rove engaged, in your words,  in a screaming match over immigration, and Rove said that  you would never again "darken the doorstep of the White House." Are you still considered persona non grata at the White House?
DS:  Psychologist Robert Hare has discussed in his work the use of doublespeak as a hallmark of psychopaths, and social scientists have pointed out that the use of doublespeak is most prevalent in the fields of law and politics.  Do these two trends alarm you?
DS:  What is the proper role of Congress in the time of war?
DS:  Politics is dominated by lawyers. What other group of people or professions would you prefer to see dominate the field of politics and why?
DS:  Do you think lawyers are better for handling legislation and as politicians?  
DS:  You have supported proposed constitutional amendments that would ban abortion and same-sex marriage. You are also a strong supporter of the Second Amendment. Why do you believe that the U.S. Constitution should regulate medical procedures and personal relationships, but not gun ownership?
DS:  You recently spoke out against the Black and Hispanic Congressional caucuses, stating, "It is utterly hypocritical for Congress to extol the virtues of a color-blind society while officially sanctioning caucuses that are based solely on race. If we are serious about achieving the goal of a colorblind society, Congress should lead by example and end these divisive, race-based caucuses."  Do you also believe there is no longer a need for the NAACP?
DS:  You were one of a handful of Republicans who voted for a bill proposed by Maurice Hinchey and Dana Rohrabacher to stop the Department of Justice from raiding medical marijuana patients and caregivers in states where medical marijuana is legal, citing states' rights concerns.  On the other hand, you have suggested state legislators and mayors should be imprisoned for passing laws contrary to federal immigration law, and you support the Federal Marriage Amendment to ban gay marriage nationally.  How do you reconcile these seemingly contradictory positions?
DS:  If you had to support one of the Democratic candidates, which one would it be and why?

Have an opinion on this story? Share it!

Share this: 






This page is archived, and is no longer publicly editable.
Got a correction? Add the template {{editprotected}} to the talk page along with your corrections, and it will be brought to the attention of the administrators.
Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections.
Note that some listed sources or external links may no longer be available online due to age.
Got a correction? Add the template {{editprotected}} to the talk page along with your corrections, and it will be brought to the attention of the administrators.
Please note that due to our archival policy, we will not alter or update the content of articles that are archived, but will only accept requests to make grammatical and formatting corrections.
Interview with U.S. Republican Presidential candidate Tom Tancredo