Trump’s attorney general warned him against pardoning hardline sheriff Arpaio
THE backlash against Donald Trump’s decision to pardon a controversial sheriff intensified yesterday after it emerged that his own attorney general advised against the move.
On Friday, as much of the media was focussed on Hurricane Harvey’s approach to Texas, Mr Trump announced he was pardoning Joseph Arpaio, a political ally facing jail time for refusing to obey court orders to end police patrols focusing on Latinos in Arizona.
The White House had signalled Mr Trump’s intention in advance but no one expected the contentious decision to be made so rapidly – before Arpaio had even been sentenced.
The decision brought immediate condemnation from both opponents and members of his Republican party.
At the weekend, the Washington Post reported that the president had asked Jeff Sessions, the attorney general, in spring whether it would be possible for the government to drop the case against Arpaio.
Mr Sessions said it would be inappropriate, according to three people familiar with the conversation.
Instead Mr Trump allowed the case to go to trial and granted clemency after he had been found guilty.
Although he was acting well within presidential powers, his predecessors have waited until the end of their terms before granting pardons and generally only after formal requests for clemency have been made following years of remorse from the recipient.
In his 23 years as Maricopa County sheriff, Arpaio became known for his hard stance on immigrants. In 2011 he was ordered to stop detaining people solely on suspicion they were illegal immigrants but he refused. He faced up to six months in jail after being found guilty of contempt of court.
Mr Trump hailed him an “American patriot” as he announced the pardon. It will have delighted a political base that voted for tougher controls on immigration, but it brought an immediate backlash from senior Republicans, led by Paul Ryan, who heads the party in the House of Representatives.
“Law enforcement officials have a special responsibility to respect the rights of everyone in the United States,” said his spokesman. “We should not allow anyone to believe that responsibility is diminished by this pardon.”
Meanwhile, the fallout from Mr Trump’s handling of Charlottesville – where white supremacists clashed with counter-protesters – continues.
Appearing on Fox News Sunday, Rex Tillerson, US secretary of state, was asked whether Mr Trump’s values were in line with American ones.
“The president speaks for himself,” said Mr Tillerson, in comments that will do nothing to dispel a growing sense of a rift in the White House.