Tom Tancredo

This morning, Tom Tancredo made it official. He's running for president.

DES MOINES, Iowa -- Criticizing other GOP candidates as weak in their efforts to stop illegal immigration, Colorado Rep. Tom Tancredo announced Monday he would seek the Republican presidential nomination.

"The political elite in Washington have chosen to ignore this phenomenon," he said.

Tancredo, a congressman who has gained prominence in recent years for his staunch stance against illegal immigration, said immigration would be the primary focus of his campaign.

He said he would not enter the race if he thought one of the leading candidates was sufficiently conservative on the issue.

It's, "the field, the field," he said when asked why he was entering the race. "You look and you see no one is going to make this the primary issue of their campaign."

I don't think that Tancredo really believes he has a shot at the nomination.

I assume that he wants to force the front runners with the big bucks to take ILLEGAL immigration seriously and address the issue.

Because Tancredo is basing his campaign on that single issue, I don't think he's positioning himself for the number two spot on the ticket.

By taking a strong stand on such a divisive issue as ILLEGAL immigration, Tancredo would probably be seen as a liability as a vice presidential nominee.

Tancredo's campaign is only about drawing attention to the problem of ILLEGAL immigration. His aspirations stop there. At least I hope they do. If not, he's clinically delusional.