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ELECTION 2005
Minuteman co-founder
to run for Congress?
Immigration activist Jim Gilchrist
looks at open California seat

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Posted: August 10, 2005
1:00 a.m. Eastern



© 2005 WorldNetDaily.com



Jim Gilchrist

Jim Gilchrist, co-founder of the Minuteman Project civilian border patrol organization, is seriously considering a run for Congress, promising to make stemming the tide of illegal immigration his No. 1 priority.

The 48th Congressional District of California will soon be vacant due to President Bush's appointment of Rep. Chris Cox as head of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Once Cox officially resigns from his House seat, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is required to set a date for a special election within 14 days. That election must be held between 112 and 119 days later.


Chris Simcox, founder of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps, has authored an e-mail to supporters urging them to financially support Gilchrist's likely run.

"Jim is seriously considering running for this seat. And, if he wins, he'll take the fight to protect our borders straight to the President with real border security legislation!" states Simcox. "California's 48th Congressional District sits squarely in Republican Orange County with over 50 percent registered Republicans!"

Stresses Simcox: "If ever there were a time to support a fellow Minuteman, it is now!"

Not yet a year old, the Minuteman Project made national headlines in April when it patrolled a 23-mile stretch of the U.S.-Mexico border in Arizona, preventing countless crossings by illegal aliens. MinutemanHQ.com – the combined effort of the Minuteman Civil Defense Corps and the Minuteman Project – has established at least 25 chapters along the southern border and also is planning patrols on the Canadian border.

In his e-mail, Simcox claims Schwarzenegger, Bush and the Republican "establishment" have already chosen the candidate they want to see in Cox's seat: State Sen. John Campbell.

Saying Campbell is "soft" on immigration issues, Simcox writes, "We cannot afford to have another congressman in D.C. who is willing to sellout our country's national security for party gain! That's why we need Jim in Congress!"

A 56-year-old Vietnam vet, Gilchrist holds a BA in newspaper journalism, a BS in business administration and an MBA in taxation. He is a former newspaper reporter and a retired CPA.

Gilchrist is a veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps and recipient of the Purple Heart for wounds sustained while serving in Southeast Asia, 1968-1969.


"The GOP establishment doesn't want an independent Jim Gilchrist in this race because they know they can't control him and they know he's going to embarrass them over [the immigration] issue," Simcox writes.

Simcox says raising money early is the key to getting national attention and urges supporters to "help put the fear of God in the GOP."