Tancredo, just shut up.
By Latrivia
@Latrivia (2878)
United States
February 9, 2010 9:00am CST
The fact that you haven't learned from history and are willing to put an unconstitutional practice into place makes me hope your constituents tear you a new hole come next election.
http://thehill.com/blogs/blog-briefing-room/news/80005-tancredo-tells-tea-partiers-literacy-test-would-have-stopped-obama
Anyone who agrees with this needs to go back and read the history books. A civics literacy test was originally born and bred to weed out specific people, and not just the uneducated. The way Tancredo puts it, I can see exactly which people he expects to target with it - non-english speakers, democrats, and the uneducated. I know our country has a huge issue with people who know nothing of how our government functions putting politicians into a place of power. It's an annoying fact of life, but it can't be solved by stripping the right to vote from American citizens and placing that right only into the hands of those who actually payed attention in high school government class.
I have a civics literacy test for you, Tancredo, let's see if you can pass it.
Q: What does the first clause of the 14th amendment say?
3 people like this
4 responses
@gewcew23 (8007)
• United States
9 Feb 10
Just to let you know Tom Tancredo is not a member of Congress any more. Tancredo is one of these fear the boogieman so to give me importance. Like with his constant fight over illegal immigration, fear the man picking your crops while paying no attention to the man picking your wallet, or in this case trampling on peoples rights.
1 person likes this
@anniepa (27955)
• United States
9 Feb 10
Thank GOD this idiot has already left Congress but can you imagine if he'd been successful in his run for President??!! I'm not sure which was the most disturbing, the things Tancredo said in his speech at the Tea Party Convention or the rousing applause he got when he said it. I can only hope the members of that audience who thought they agreed with him really didn't understand exactly what he meant by "civics literacy test" or its history. As recently as 1965 this was used in some states to prevent blacks and Latinos from registering to vote and the questions were such that even a Constitutional scholar may have a problem passing by memory. You can read more and see a sample test from the link below.
This is sad because although I haven't attended any tea parties I know some who have and I'm sure the vast majority of them are not of the mindset of Tancredo and those who applauded him so enthusiastically.
Annie
: http://www.crmvet.org/info/lithome.htm
@Latrivia (2878)
• United States
10 Feb 10
The fact that anyone would have agreed with him would have probably indicated that a good number of them would have failed the civics literacy tests. So few people understand that it's not about reading skills and comprehension, but about knowledge of the workings of the government.
1 person likes this
@xfahctor (14118)
• Lancaster, New Hampshire
9 Feb 10
I cringed and let out an audible groan when he was speaking. It was embarrasing. He's just another republican brought in by the hijackers of the tea parties. Please understand folks, Tancredo does NOT represent the genuine tea party movement. This whole event should have been boycotted and LOUDLY exposed for the con job it was.
I have often joked that people should pass an intelligence test befor being able to vote...but it was tongue in cheek...a JOKE.
1 person likes this
