http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/index.php?sty=47388

Immigration control advocate rallies GOP activists

By Le Templar, Tribune
September 4, 2005
Once shunned as a "crazy" ultraconservative, Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., has become a national icon for the political right because of his strident campaign against immigration.

"I’ve been traveling to every state trying to light a fire about immigration," Tancredo said at a Saturday night reception in Scottsdale for a national convention of Republican activists. "But I’m finding the fire is already raging, and I’m just grabbing the bellows to push it higher."

Tancredo leads a collection of immigration control advocates in Congress that has grown from just seven members in early 2001 to more than 70, including fellow Reps. J.D. Hayworth and Trent Franks, Arizona Republicans.

Working behind the scenes, Tancredo also helped shape the campaign message for Proposition 200, the Arizona initiative approved by voters that targets illegal immigrants.

"He’s probably been to the border more often than our own congressional delegation," said Randy Pullen of Phoenix, a leading Proposition 200 advocate and a member of the Republican National Committee. "He has an in-depth understanding of our problems and issues."

This summer, Tancredo has been traveling the country in search of backing for a possible 2008 presidential bid. While he’s a nearly impossible long-shot compared with Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., Tancredo received more support than the Arkansas governor and two other senators in an August political poll in New Hampshire â€â€