Trump ‘Seriously Considering’ Pardoning Racist Sheriff Joe Arpaio Because ‘He’s a Great American Patriot’

Arpaio a Hero to Neo-Nazis

Former Sheriff Joe Arpaio may be receiving a pardon. President Donald Trump tells Fox News that “America’s Toughest Sheriff” has been treated poorly.

“I am seriously considering a pardon for Sheriff Arpaio,” Trump told Fox News in an interview Sunday that was published Monday. “He has done a lot in the fight against illegal immigration. He’s a great American patriot and I hate to see what has happened to him.”

What happened to the former sheriff is voters tossed him out of the office he held for 24 years, after he spent over a decade fighting “illegal” immigration, often times by breaking the law and advancing a racist agenda.

“Is there anyone in local law enforcement who has done more to crack down on illegal immigration than Sheriff Joe?”  Trump asked. “He has protected people from crimes and saved lives. He doesn’t deserve to be treated this way.”

Arpaio was also an early endorser of Trump.

A 2009 Phoenix New Times article reported “Neo-Nazis and Extreme Right-Wingers Love Joe Arpaio.”

Three years later the DOJ sued Arpaio.

“The Justice Department has filed suit against Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio and the Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office, alleging the police force discriminates against Latinos, uses excessive force, runs its jail unconstitutionally and has taken illegal action to silence critics,” ABC News reported in 2012.

“The Maricopa County Sheriff’s Office (MCSO) and Sheriff Joseph M. Arpaio have engaged and continue to engage in a pattern or practice of unlawful discriminatory police conduct directed at Latinos in Maricopa County and jail practices that unlawfully discriminate against Latino prisoners with limited English language skills,” the lawsuit alleges. “Latinos in Maricopa County are frequently stopped, detained, and arrested on the basis of race, color, or national origin, and Latino prisoners with limited English language skills are denied important constitutional protections. In addition, Defendants MCSO and Arpaio pursue a pattern or practice of illegal retaliation against their perceived critics by subjecting them to baseless criminal actions, unfounded civil lawsuits, or meritless administrative actions.”

Along with Trump, Arpaio was at the center of the birther movement, insisting President Barack Obama’s birth certificate had been faked. 

The ACLU denounced the possible pardon:

Others:

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Image by Gage Skidmore via Flickr and a CC license