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Posted: October 17, 2007 7:05 PM
Tancredo Calls for Immigrant DNA Testing to Prove Family Ties
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Rep. Tom Tancredo, R-Colo., introduced a bill in the House this week that would require immigrants seeking visas to visit the United States and join their families to submit DNA testing to prove those ties.

Tancredo said the measure is necessary because other types of identification documents are unreliable and vulnerable to fraud. An increase in immigration fees would offset the cost of the testing.

“This will help protect our immigration system. It will give us one more tool to make sure that the beneficiaries of these visas are who they say they are,” Tancredo said in a statement.

The last week has been an eventful one for immigration hard-liners. In other House action this week, Tancredo also criticized a federal court ruling that bars the government from sending letters to employers about potentially fraudulent Social Security numbers, Texas mayors who oppose the new border fence, and the appeals case of an illegal immigrant on death row for the rape and murder of two girls.

On Tuesday, Tancredo became the first major GOP candidate to get his name on the New Hampshire primary ballot. The filing followed last week’s addition to the ballot for the Feb. 5 Utah primary.

Upon filing for the New Hampshire primary, Tancredo summoned memories of former Sen. Zell Miller, D-Ga., and his proposition of a duel with Chris Matthews. Musing over former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney’s attacks on opponents’ conservative credentials, he challenged Romney to a trap shooting contest in which the loser would drop out of the race.

While campaigning in Iowa last week, Tancredo participated in a live chat sponsored by the Cedar Rapids Gazette, the Concord Monitor, and The Washington Post. He spent time in Cedar Rapids and Bettendorf, where he also denounced Planned Parenthood and discussed his anti-abortion advocacy.

New Hampshire and Florida are on Tancredo’s itinerary this week. He is slated to attend the Ronald Reagan Dinner for the Androscoggin Valley GOP in Whitefield on Friday and the Londonderry Annual GOP Breakfast in Manchester and the Keene Pumpkin Festival in Keene on Saturday. On Sunday, Tancredo is expected to attend the Fox News Debate in Orlando.