HAYES: Tom Tancredo, of course, is the anti-immigrant candidate. He is the "Bomb Mecca" candidate, but perhaps most hilariously, he`s also the "impeach Obama" candidate. For reasons that are as inexplicable as they are lackey, Mr. Tancredo thinks President Obama should be impeached.

And though Tom Tancredo`s name will not have an "R" next to it on the ballot, if he makes it that far, it is increasingly clear the Republican governing strategy should the party win back one or both houses of Congress this fall can best be described as Clinton era-esque and then some.

Republicans in the House and Senate wrote a letter late last week to the Democratic chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee demanding an investigation into the Justice Department`s decision to not pursue a voter fraud case involving the New Black Panther Party.

They want a full and complete investigation into this outrageous decision by the Obama administration not to pursue criminal charges, just like the Bush administration. But that`s not the point.

The point is this tactic works. Investigators are now looking into the case which is described by one of those investigators, thusly, quote, "This has to do with their," meaning Republicans, "fantasies about how they could use this issue to topple the Obama administration. My fellow conservatives on the commission had this wild notion that they could bring Eric Holder down and really damage the president."

That`s right. She said fellow conservatives. She`s a conservative, the Bush administration appointee, and she`s calling this a witch hunt. But it is Republican Congressman Darrell Issa who has really spearheaded this part of the Republican governing strategy since Obama took office.

He has played all the songs in the Republican greatest hits collection. He`s requested a special prosecutor to investigate the White House. He demanded travel documents from the administration.

He has promised that if Republicans take back the House this fall, he will practically double his team of investigators capable of issuing subpoenas.

Remember how awesome the Clinton years were? The $2 million Arkansas project launched by a conservative magazine to take President Clinton down - Whitewater, Ken star, Trooper-gate? The conspiracy theory that President Clinton was running drugs out of an airstrip in Arkansas?

Yes, the bad old days. And who could forget Republican Congressman Dan Burton shooting a watermelon in his backyard to prove that an administration official could not have committed suicide.

This is the governing strategy Republicans want to return to if they win back the majority this November. But you don`t have to take my word for it.

(BEGIN AUDIO CLIP)

REP. MICHELE BACHMANN (R-MN): I think all we should do is issue subpoenas and have one hearing after another.

(END AUDIO CLIP)

HAYES: Now, Congressional oversight is good for democracy. It is crucial, in fact. And when Darrell Issa demanded treasury release documents related to the bailout of AIG, I cheered. But oversight and witch hunts are two very, very different things.

And the Republican Party today is way more influenced by its kook-end fringe than it was during the days of Newt Gingrich and Tom DeLay, hard as that may be to believe. So if you like the impeach, investigate, subpoena approach of the 1990s, which slowed and/or stopped the function of the government, then no need to hop about into your own hot tub time machine.

Just watch what we`re in for if the GOP regains Congress in the midterms. I guarantee you it will actually make you miss Ken Starr.