President Donald Trump told Fox News that he is “seriously considering” pardoning former Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio. Last month, Arpaio was convicted of ignoring a judge’s order to stop detaining people simply because of a hunch that he had that they were undocumented immigrants.
“I might do it right away, maybe early this week. I am seriously thinking about it,” Trump said, according to Fox News. He said Arpaio was a “great American patriot” who had “done a lot in the fight against illegal immigration.”
“Is there anyone in local law enforcement who has done more to crack down on illegal immigration than Sheriff Joe?” Trump said, according to Fox News. “He has protected people from crimes and saved lives. He doesn’t deserve to be treated this way.”
For those who don’t know, Arpaio is a legendary crusader for all white Americans that despise illegal immigrants. Arpaio called himself “America’s Toughest Sheriff”, because of his outspoken stance against illegal immigration. In 2010, he became the guardian for Arizona’s SB1070, an anti-illegal immigrant law that was struck down by the US Supreme Court.
Doesn’t take a rocket scientist to recognize the camaraderie between Arpaio and Trump. After all, Arpaio’s crusade against illegal immigration is really everything that our president is about. Seriously. Immigration is his base’s number one concern. Trump’s entire campaign was modeled after the phrase “America First”. Trump had a great time walking around his rallies, with Arpaio carefully placed on his shoulder, squawking like a parrot. Arpaio was a terrific crusader for the Trump cause.
What would Trump be without his tough immigration stance? Imagine Trump, minus the wall and minus his ban on Muslims and Hispanics. There would be nothing but an empty call to lower taxes. In the end, doesn’t that make Trump exactly like every other republican? Whether they are stuffing abortions down your throat or gay marriages. All that noise is just a distraction, to get you to vote to lower their taxes.
Trump’s relationship with Arpaio is nothing more than show. Everything he does is to appease his base. Not to satisfy them though. Trump knows he will never change our immigration laws or build some magical wall. All Trump wants to do is to satisfy his base, without doing any of those things. Seems impossible to satisfy both the vicious hate groups and the rest of society. Not as impossible as it may seem.
Take our president’s response to the tragedy that occurred in Charlottesville this weekend, for example. If Trump denounced the hate groups that were to blame, his loyal base support would vanish. By waiting a few days to denounce the actual killers, when the outrage was so boisterous that Trump had to cave in, his loyal KKK fan base understood that Trump was still with them although he was condemning them.
Trump must appear as if he is trying to serve his base. Paling around with Joe Arpaio certainly maintains this charade. Charade is the correct word. Do you think Trump would ever hang out with him at the local Arizona watering hole, or invite him to drink some cognac on the porch of his Trump Tower penthouse? Definitely not.
Arpaio is 85. He has always been a strong Trump supporter. In July, at the Republican National Convention, he spoke on his behalf. In fact, Trump and Arpaio endorse the same harsh illegal immigration tactics.
However, this unmitigated bravado got him in some hot water. The US Department of Justice concluded that the former sheriff practiced the worst racial profiling in US history and filed a suit against this unlawful conduct.
The legal saga surrounding Arpaio dates back years. In 2011, as part of a lawsuit, the then-sheriff was enjoined by U.S. District Judge G. Murray Snow from detaining people he thought to be illegal immigrants, when they were not charged with any other crimes. Prosecutors alleged that he continued to do so, and last year, the Justice Department decided to pursue a criminal contempt-of-court case against him. ChicagoTribune article
Pardoning Arpaio, or making it look as if he is trying to pardon Arpaio, will certainly carry much weight with his base.
