October 08, 2002
Treason
In Colorado: Tom Tancredo vs. The Denver Post
By
Joe Guzzardi
To comprehend what happened
after Congressman Tom Tancredo
called the Immigration and Naturalization
Service and suggested an inquiry into the status
of Jesus Apodaca, the illegal alien hyped in a
Denver Post August 11 front page sob
story urging that he get in-state university
tuition (“Immigrants
Shut Out of Colleges”), you must first
realize that the Denver Post is an
illegal alien propaganda machine disguised as a
newspaper.
Note, for example, that if Apodaca
actually were a legal “immigrant,” in the disingenuous
words of the Post’s headline, rather than an
illegal alien, he would not be
“shut out of college.”
He would be there at the expense of the American
taxpayer, displacing native-born children. In fact,
there are only five illegal aliens in the Apodaca family
of seven. Two siblings were
born in the U.S. and, under the current
misinterpretation of the Fourteenth Amendment, are
thus citizens. No doubt they’ll be studying at the
expense of Colorado taxpayers soon.
I read the Denver Post every
day as part of
Numbers USA’s ongoing Media Standards Project,
evaluating fairness and balance in immigration
reporting. It can be counted on for two things:
correctly reporting Sunday’s Denver Bronco score; and
running hundreds of stories, columns, editorials and
political cartoons every year touting illegals and
benefits for illegals—such as driver’s licenses,
unlimited health care…and in-state tuition.
Tancredo was dismayed by the brazen
story (which, it turns out, was planted by the Mexican
consulate). After all, as a member of the U.S. House of
Representatives, he took an
oath of office swearing to uphold the nation’s laws.
And entering the U.S. illegally is (despite the
Denver Post) against the law. Tancredo’s phone call
should have been considered routine.
But we’re talking about illegal
immigration, Mexico and the Denver Post. So
common sense went out the window and Tancredo bashing
began. And before long, the list of usual suspects had
entered stage right: the pandering Republican Colorado
Governor Bill Owens, his pandering colleague
Republican Senator
Ben Nighthorse Campbell, the kingpin of unlimited
immigration, Democratic Senator Edward Kennedy and last
but not least, the incredibly
aggressive and influential
Latino advocacy groups.
As soon as Tancredo spoke out, the
Post launched an old-fashioned vendetta against
him. More than 30 Post stories and editorials have
appeared. All the Post’s columnists lined up to
take their shots, some more than once:
Tina Griego, Diane Carman,
Gail Schoettler,
Reggie Rivers,
Angela Cortez and Jim Anderson. Cortez and Anderson
gave Tancredo credit for bringing up a touchy subject
but both defended the Post’s position. Except for
the voice of
reason at the Post, columnist Al Knight, all
were sharply critical.
The Post hit bottom when it
gleefully but incorrectly reported in its September 20
editorial
“Remodel the Attitude” that Tancredo had hired
illegal aliens to refurbish his basement. But, to the
Post’s dismay, Tancredo was innocent of wrongdoing.
Tancredo hired a contractor who, in turn, did not do a
proper document check.
As the Post hammered away,
Senator Campbell raced into the open arms of Senator
Kennedy. Between the two of them, they proposed
private bill legislation that would allow the
Apodaca family to become legal permanent residents and
eventually citizens.
But why bother? In Campbell’s eyes,
young Jesus is
already a citizen. Declared Campbell:
“This kid
is an American for crying out loud...”
Campbell’s action propelled the
Post’s editorial writers out of their seats with
applause. Calling for “a gold star” for Campbell in its
September 28 editorial
“Way to Go, Ben” the Post suggested that the
proposal has the support of the White House and that,
joy of joys, the conservative Bush is “aligned” with the
liberal Kennedy in favor of legal status for Apodaca.
Pandering begets pandering.
Governor Owens “embraced” Campbell’s proposal. Another
U.S. Rep.,
Mark Udall (D-Boulder), suggested he would introduce
similar legislation in the House. And U.S. Rep., Bob
Schaffer (R-Ft. Collins), is “inclined” to back Campbell.
Owens, Udall and Schaffer
represent, in the Post’s vernacular, the “rising
chorus” of support for Apodaca. Campbell is “eminently
qualified” to judge who gets special treatment. To
support the bill is “compassionate.”
Culling a few adjectives and
phrases about Tancredo from the dozens of Post columns,
I offer these gems: the old standby “xenophobe” (and
those who agree with him “schizophrenic”), has “his foot
in his mouth,” “threw a tantrum,” “railed against the
Apodaca family,” “sicced” the I.N.S. on the “hapless
teen,” made “a fiery speech” on the Congressional floor
and, in general, “fulminated.”
Furthermore according to the Post,
Tancredo “dropped a dime” on the Apodaca’s, Tancredo
“lashed out” at Owens and is “splitting the
Republican Party.” Tancredo’s actions have created fears
of “racism” in the Latino population.
Need I go on?
The Denver Post attack on
Tancredo did not surprise me. At its best, the Post
is fish-wrap.
Thus in August 2001, Tancredo and former Colorado
Governor Dick Lamm made a joint statement about the
impact of immigration on
Colorado
sprawl.
According to Census 2000, the Hispanic population of
Colorado grew by 578,000 in the last decade, a total
larger than the entire city of Denver. Obviously, those
578,000 people (including many illegal aliens) would
need housing, transportation and schools.
But the Post didn’t see it
that way. In its August 10 editorial titled “Lamm,
Tancredo Overreach” the Post suggested that
migration from San Diego to Colorado is the same as
immigration from Guatemala.
No mention, of course, that
Californians are Americans and have the legal right to
move where they please. Illegal aliens do not.
In a curious turn of phrase, the
Post wrote that it would not
“call Lamm and Tancredo xenophobes.”
I read the sentence as:
“We would
love to call Lamm and Tancredo xenophobes”
or
“We dare not call Lamm,
Tancredo xenophobes but please be our guest.”
I called Post Editorial Page
editor Sue O’Brien to ask why the editorial introduced
“xenophobe” if not to plant the idea in reader’s minds.
O’Brien, who worked for Lamm while he was governor,
responded: “Good question.”
My exchanges with O’Brien came to
an abrupt halt when I asked her if I could summarize my
personal experiences as an
E.S.L instructor in an Op-ed. I never heard back.
Let’s summarize and update this
nasty affair.
-
Jesus Apodaca is in the U.S. illegally. He and the
other Apodacas illegally in the U.S. are entitled to
nothing. Some of the illegal young Apodacas have
already benefited from taxpayer funded K-12 education.
-
Apodaca, who has a summer office job, is not in such
bad shape. He can do what millions have done—go to
junior college at night, accumulate credits and
eventually pay his own way through University of
Colorado at the out-of-state rate.
-
The Post’s incessant Tancredo-pounding
might be infinitesimally more acceptable if it used the
same sledgehammer on all immigration issues. Where, for
example, was the venom over the 110
indicted illegal aliens employed at the Denver
International Airport?
-
The Post must assume a large share of the
blame for the ensuing disruption in the Apodaca family’s
life. The family has left its home, disconnected its
telephone and is staying, according to current
information, at the Denver Mexican Consulate.
Had the
Post been in touch with Denver
public opinion regarding immigration it might have
thought twice before making Jesus Apodaca a poster-boy.
The newspaper’s poll showed that 85% of readers have a
“favorable” or “highly favorable” opinion of Tancredo.
The Denver ABC affiliate poll found viewers strongly
opposed (85%) to the Campbell bill. And the Greeley
(Co.) Tribune’s poll indicated that 60% of
respondents favored deporting Jesus Apodaca.
-
To date, no co-sponsors have signed onto
Campbell’s bill. Maybe that’s because Campbell’s bill
may violate both the Senate and the House Judiciary
rules governing private bills. For Campbell’s
proposal to be considered, the Apodacas would have to
show that they attempted and were denied judicial or
administrative remedy. But they have made no such
attempt.
-
Tancredo is not “splitting the Republican Party” on
immigration. He has shown that immigration reduction
is a number one priority in America.
Tancredo, who has not backed down
under fire, has expressed the feelings of most Americans
on immigration.
His fellow Congressmen can learn a
lesson from Tancredo’s example.
I have no hope for the Denver
Post.
Helpful VDARE.COM note:
The Denver Post’s Publisher is
William Dean
Singleton
Gregory Moore,
editor,
Larry Burrough,
managing editor/news,
Jeffrey Taylor,
assistant managing editor/local news,
Sue O'Brien,
editor of the editorial page,
letters@denverpost.com
(Letters to the editor - to be considered, letters must
include full name, home town and daytime phone number)
newsroom@denverpost.com
(main e-mail for the news gathering department)
Todd Engdahl,
Editor, Denverpost.com
Columnists:
Tina Griego
Diane Carman
Reggie Rivers
Angela Cortez
According to the
Contact Page,
“Most reporters and editors have e-mail, and addresses
are structured by first initial and last name. So, if
you're trying to reach reporter Jane Doe, try jdoe@denverpost.com”
