American Constitutional Party candidate Tom Tancredo fired back at Colorado Republican nominee for governor Dan Maes Wednesday, calling on the brand new nominee to do the right thing now that he has won the nomination and withdraw from the race. After winning the GOP primary Tuesday, Maes called on Tancredo, a right wing icon in the state, to withdraw his third party bid for governor. Tancredo told the Colorado Independent he was having none of it.
“I have the same request of [Maes],” Tancredo said. “I think that he’s the third-party candidate and it’d be a good idea for him to drop out to reduce the split among conservative voters.”
Maes was equally frank in talking about Tancredo at his victory party Tuesday.
“Tonight is a celebration, but there is an 800-pound gorilla in the room we must address,” he said. “Mr. Tancredo, stop your campaign tonight!”
Tancredo said he feels “pretty good” about the GOP nomination, since he thinks that Dan Maes is a “nice fellow” but not a “serious challenger.”
Tancredo criticized Maes’s lack of credentials and experience in politics and governance.
“I have a better resume. At least I know how long the legislative session lasts and how it works,” said Tancredo.
The former congressman and anti-illegal immigration warrior also said he and Maes differ sharply on illegal immigration.
“[Maes] has said that [illegal immigration] is not a big issue. Well it means a lot to me and it means a lot to Coloradans who are out there looking for jobs.”
Also at his victory party, Maes lumped illegal immigration in with rolling back vehicle registration fees put in place by Democratic Gov. Bill Ritter. He said he would simply “enroll the state in a program that deports illegal alien criminals.”
A new survey from Public Policy Polling shows that Tancredo leads Maes in the polls with 23 percent support compared to Maes’s 22 percent. Democratic nominee John Hickenlooper leads the race for governor of Colorado with 48 percent support.
[Photo of Tom Tancredo via JTo ]
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