DENVER—Republican presidential candidate Tom Tancredo is airing another television ad with ominous warnings about immigration, this one saying that “vicious Central American gangs” in the U.S. are killing mothers, raping children and selling drugs.
The ad, which began running in Iowa on Tuesday, weaves images of tattooed Hispanic men and bloody bodies and blames “gutless politicians who refuse to defend our borders.”
Tancredo, a Colorado congressman, has centered his long-shot campaign on immigration. His earlier ad said Islamic terrorists who “froth with hate” have entered the United States. It showed a hooded man appearing to blow up a shopping mall, leaving bloodied bodies behind.
That ad drew charges of fear-mongering, and Tancredo spokesman Alan Moore said the campaign expects the new one to be controversial as well.
“The congressman has said from day one that his goal has been to change the debate on immigration to focus on securing our borders and enforcing our laws,” Moore said. “If no one else is going to talk about it, then we have to because he is a champion of illegal immigration reform.”
Asked for specifics about the allegation that gangs are raping children, Moore said, “I wish there was just one or two instances that I can tell you, but unfortunately there are just way too many.”
Moore cited the gang-style execution of four New Jersey teens. Jose Carranza, an illegal immigrant from Peru, had been charged with sexual assault of a child before he was charged in the Aug. 4 shooting.
Moore said the campaign is considering running the new ad in the New Hampshire and South Carolina.
Tancredo announced in October he would not seek a sixth term in Congress.
