House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) ripped President Trump’s decision to pardon controversial former Sheriff Joe Arpaio on Friday, calling the action a “mockery of the rule of law.”
“POTUS pardon of fellow birther Arpaio makes mockery of rule of law, & says communities of color can be targeted & abused with total impunity,” Pelosi wrote in a tweet.
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Arpaio, who is the former mayor of Maricopa County, Ariz., was faulted in a Justice Department probe for racially profiling Latinos.
He was convicted in July of criminal contempt for disobeying a federal judge’s order on detaining individuals suspected of being in the U.S. illegally.
“Throughout his time as Sheriff, Arpaio continued his life’s work of protecting the public from the scourges of crime and illegal immigration,” the White House said in a statement announcing the pardon.
“Sheriff Joe Arpaio is now eighty-five years old, and after more than fifty years of admirable service to our Nation, he is a worthy candidate for a Presidential pardon,” the statement continued.
Trump hinted that he would pardon Arpaio during a rally in Phoenix earlier this week.