Tancredo quits presidential race

Rep. Tom Tancredo (R-Colo.) dropped his bid for the presidency Thursday and endorsed former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney.
 
Tancredo said he was impressed with Romney’s ability to solve complex problems and described him as a man of “personal integrity and great character.”

{mosads}Tancredo has criticized Romney on immigration, Tancredo’s signature issue. But during an Iowa press conference Thursday, Tancredo said he had met with Romney to discuss immigration and now believed the former Massachusetts governor would do the right thing.

“I am convinced that he will do the things he said he will do in the areas that I — specifically in the areas that I pointed out,” Tancredo said.

He acknowledged he and Romney still have some disagreements on the issue, but pointed out he also disagrees with other GOP candidates. “There are things that I wish I could have gotten all the candidates to agree with me on, and that’s not there,” he said.

Tancredo said he was dropping out of the race because he feared that if he stayed in, he would not win and it might help a worse candidate on immigration win the GOP nomination. “While several of the candidates appear to be committed to our cause, there are others whose records as public servants are abysmal on this issue,” Tancredo said, without naming names.

“They have been on the other side of the battle for years and encouraging and even inviting, in a way, illegal immigrants into the country,” he said.

GOP presidential candidate Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) backed legislation overhauling immigration law earlier this year that was opposed by Tancredo. He has also criticized another GOP candidate, former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, for presiding over a “sanctuary city” for illegal immigrants.
 
Romney is in a neck and neck race in the first-in-the-nation Iowa caucuses with former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, who has recently taken a lead in polls. Both candidates have attacked one another’s positions on immigration.

Tancredo, the most vocal opponent of illegal immigration in Congress and among the presidential candidates, made waves in the campaign with his rhetoric and two controversial advertisements. In one ad that sought to link illegal immigration to terrorism, a hooded figure is shown leaving explosives in a public place.

Tancredo said his campaign was a success because it had made immigration one of the most hotly debated issues among Republicans. In recent months, he’s charged other candidates with trying to “out-Tancredo Tancredo.” Although he never received broad support, with poll numbers stuck in single digits, he insisted his campaign was responsible for persuading other candidates to take stances against illegal immigration just as he did.

“According to Newsweek, the Tancredo campaign has already won,” he said. “Just this month, The Economist, The New Yorker, The Wall Street Journal and even The New York Times have grudgingly accredited our campaign with forcing the issue of immigration to the forefront of national debate.”

Tancredo, Colorado’s 6th district congressman since 1999, announced that he will not seek reelection next year.