Breaking News UPDATE: Tancredo quits GOP race
(UPDATE: Quoting a person close to Rep. Tom Tancredo of Colorado, the Associated Press reported late this afternoon that the Colorado representative would announce his withdrawal from the Republican race at an Iowa news conference Thursday.
Tancredo based his long-shot candidacy on his opposition to illegal immigration. He ran hard-hitting ads linking lax border security to terrorist attacks and other crime. But the six-term representative has consistently polled at the back of the Republican pack. He has announced his retirement from the House but hinted at a run for Colorado's open Senate seat next year.
Tancredo's departure reduces the GOP field to seven candidates.)
We had presumed that under-financed and infrequently written-about Tancredo would hang around the Republican presidential race, taking advantage of debate invitations to press his one-note candidacy. But the House member from Colorado may have a surprise for us.
His campaign has announced that he's got a "major announcement" to make Thursday in Des Moines (noon, PST) and it's hard to imagine that he would be cheeky enough to apply that label to anything other than officially ending his White House bid (in practical terms, it never really began).
Tancredo's "major announcement" will coincide with his 62nd birthday, so maybe he's detailing some party plans. If, instead, he's folding his presidential tent, he will no doubt decamp proudly, proclaiming that his relentless focus on what he asserts are the negative effects of immigration -- both illegal and legal -- dramatically shaped the dialogue among other GOP candidates.
We've gotten a taste of Tancredo's pride in his efforts already. During the YouTube-sponsored debate in late November, he beamed as he noted that several of the other candidates had sought to "out-Tancredo Tancredo" on the immigration issue.
He continued: "It is great. I am so happy to hear it. It is a wonderful thing. It's a good message, yes. ..."
He will also be remembered for one of the season's most hard-edged ads (which, given his lack of money, was on the air only briefly).
One note of caution: We've been fooled before by the "major announcement" gambit.
Nebraska Sen. Chuck Hagel used it to lure a big crowd of reporters to Omaha early in the year, only to say that he was continuing to mull his future plans (ultimately, he not only nixed a much-rumored presidential campaign, but decided to give up politics altogether).
Back in June, Tommy Thompson (remember him?) used the "major announcement" characterization to merely assure curious reporters that he was still in the presidential race (when he dropped out two months later, he spared us the "major announcement" buildup).
-- Don Frederick
Andrew Malcolm's immigrant parents repeatedly stressed the importance of active participation in a democracy. Early lessons included learning the alphabetical list of states by watching televised roll calls of national political conventions. That childhood exposure led to a lifelong fascination with politics, including 40-plus years of covering them and a brief stint practicing them as press secretary to Laura Bush in 1999-2000. A veteran foreign and national correspondent, Malcolm served on the Times Editorial Board and was a Pulitzer finalist in 2004. He is the author of 10 nonfiction books and father of four.
Johanna Neuman is a veteran Washington correspondent for both The Los Angeles Times and USA Today, having covered presidents and politics as far back as Ronald Reagan. A former president of the White House Correspondents Assn., she authored a book on media and foreign policy, “Lights, Camera, Wars.” Most recently she was co-author of the 
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The URL above links to news of his announcement.
Posted by: Curtis Hubbard | December 19, 2007 at 03:57 PM
Tom Tan-creido: Adios amigo!
I feel sorry for the man...Immigration is a problem, but he is a Racist...Xenophobic...Ignorant Lunatic...
Posted by: Joe Barcenes | December 19, 2007 at 07:08 PM
"what he asserts are the negative effects of immigration -- both illegal and legal"
They're just assertions: the LAT thinks there's an upside to things like tens of thousands of illegal aliens from countries like Iraq, Iran, Saudi Arabia and so on having been released into the U.S. Or, something like that.
Here's a fun test: name all the groups that would cheer Tancredo dropping out (besides politicians). Then, out of those groups, list any that are not basically crooks in one way or another (note that other politicians are excluded to make it easier).
Posted by: NoMoreBlatherDotCom | December 19, 2007 at 07:43 PM
I've posted this at more than just this blog, but I definitely do not work for Romney's campaign. I want some conservatives, who I feel haven't given Mitt a fair shake thus far, to seriously reconsider their positions. Romney is clearly now the anti-illegal immigration candidate. What candidate can win the support of ALL conservatives...fiscal, defense, AND social? Mitt's the man!
Posted by: Cory | December 20, 2007 at 04:35 PM
What I want is an anti NAU candidate and I do not believe Romney fits that bill.
Posted by: msbobbie | December 20, 2007 at 08:56 PM