POLITICAL FIGURES/POLITICS: “Joe Arpaio, a polarizing national figure for his hard line on immigration, was voted out of office after nearly 24 years as Maricopa County Sheriff. He was convicted of disobeying a court order to stop the immigration raids that helped make him famous.
Now, at 85, Mr. Arpaio is back—and aiming for higher office.
President Donald Trump pardoned Mr. Arpaio, leaving him free to run to replace outgoing Republican Sen. Jeff Flake…
A recent poll by ABC 15 Arizona and OH Predictive Insights shows Mr. Arpaio in a statistical tie with the Republican favorite, U.S. Rep. Martha McSally.
Mr. Arpaio’s tough approach to immigration drew hundreds of lawsuits and a Justice Department investigation, which concluded that his office had engaged in systemic racial profiling. It also won him admiration in the state for standing up to the federal government, which many believed wasn’t doing enough to stop illegal immigration.
Mr. Arpaio’s run could prove a test of whether the political atmosphere in the state has shifted since he was at the center of the national immigration debate.
The state’s law, SB 1070, allowed local police to enforce immigration law, and was partially invalidated by the U.S. Supreme Court.”
-Alejandro Lazo, “Ex-Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio Rides Back Into the Political Arena,” The Wall Street Journal online, Jan. 16, 2018 07:00am