THE BURNED OVER DISTRICT

And his run for governor is sending shivers through the Republican Party who were hoping for someone who could, at least pretend to be normal before Election Day.

Tom Tancredo, the firebrand former congressman, Harley-Davidson biker and perennial headache for Colorado’s Republican leaders, was taking fire from all sides last week in the final days of his primary campaign for governor. His rivals were slamming him on the airwaves. Moderate Republicans were warning that Mr. Tancredo’s name on the ballot could doom their chances in crucial races across this swing state.

But for the moment, Mr. Tancredo’s big peeve was an online commenter who had smeared him on his campaign’s Facebook page, falsely attributing racist language to the candidate. Mr. Tancredo’s people had pulled the remark, but he still was piqued. “We’re going to sue his ass from here to Omaha,” Mr. Tancredo said, scrolling through his phone.

Fifteen years after he built a national reputation as an inflammatory foe of illegal immigration, Tom Tancredo, 68, is still campaigning, without apology, as Tom Tancredo. He skipped the debates ahead of Tuesday’s four-way Republican primary. He defied calls to drop out of the race. He embraces marijuana legalization. He says President Obama should be impeached, but notes that “you can’t criticize him because he’s black and if you do, you’re a racist.”

To Mr. Tancredo’s thinking, if one is going to go through all the rigors of a political campaign, “You should do it for a reason and be unwilling to modify your positions, just because you fear that some people out there will be turned off by it,” he said. “That’s not a reason to soft-pedal certain things.”

Crazier than a shithouse rat, unmellowed by ag and raising more money than the other candidates, Teabag Tommy is the Colorado Republican Party's worst nightmare.