joe arpaio

Sheriff Joe Arpaio

Sheriff of Maricopa County in Arizona. Known for being a publicity hound and for supporting immigration enforcement. The latter has made him a target of open or loose borders proponents such as Janet Napolitano, Isabel Garcia, Phoenix mayor Phil Gordon, and the like.

Last modified Dec 28, 2009
Discussed in (click each link for the full post):

Brave New Foundation, Rachel Maddow think you're gullible (FAIR, immigration, SB1070) - 04/25/12

The video below shows Rachel Maddow and Robert Greenwald's Brave New Films thinking you're a gullible sucker in at least two ways.

DOJ investigation claims Sheriff Joe Arpaio engaged in "unconstitutional policing" (immigration, Arizona, Maricopa County) - 12/15/11

The Department of Justice's politically-motivated quasi-witchhunt of Maricopa County, Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio has concluded with a report claiming that Arpaio engaged in "unconstitutional policing" and unreasonably targeted Latinos.

DOJ sues Joe Arpaio over civil rights investigation documents - 09/02/10

The Department of Justice has sued Joe Arpaio - sheriff of Maricopa County - claiming that he's obstructed their investigation into possible racial profiling. This is, needless to say, the Obama administration's latest attack on Arizona in an attempt to prevent states from doing the job the federal government won't do: try to reduce illegal immigration. And, those attacks are preventable if people would work to reduce illegal immigration in smart ways. From the DOJ's press release [1]: The department filed today’s lawsuit after exhausting all cooperative measures to gain access to MCSO’s...

Mexican flag, Cuban flag with Che fly at protest against Arizona immigration law - 07/30/10

Yesterday, protesters turned out in Phoenix, Tucson, and other cities in Arizona and other states to protest Arizona's new immigration law ("SB 1070") In Phoenix, they tried unsuccessfully to prevent Joe Arpaio from conducting a planned crime sweep. The attached video is from the Phoenix protest and includes a large Mexican flag and a large Cuban flag - with Che Guevara's image - at the front of the protest. From this: Hundreds of people representing more than 30 labor unions traveled to Phoenix from Los Angeles to be part of a protest against Arizona's new immigration law. From this later...

Arizona helped deport 26,000 illegal aliens under 287g (Arpaio, Maricopa County) - 07/28/10

Per this biased Associated Press article, Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County, Arizona helped deport more than 26,000 illegal aliens under the 287g program. That's of course without that state's new immigration law, which is set to take effect tomorrow. Maricopa was responsible for about one-quarter of all those deported under 287g (115,841 total); 64 local agencies are part of the 287g program. Also: Joanne Lin, legislative counsel for the American Civil Liberties Union, said it is alarming that one Arizona county is responsible for a disproportionate share of deportations. The Los Angeles...

Sharron Angle goes after Reid on issues outside his control, won't press hard on immigration - 07/23/10

The video at peekURL.com/vc2rep7 is a new campaign ad from Sharron Angle in which she says: "Harry Reid says he does more for Nevada... He's done more for unemployment... He's done more for the foreclosure rate...

Michael Lacey underwriting Mexican government-linked ACLU suit against Arizona (Village Voice Media) - 05/06/10

Village Voice Media - publisher of that and other alt-weeklies - will be underwriting the cost to the American Civil Liberties Union for an upcoming lawsuit challenging Arizona's new immigration law (

Alessandra Soler Meetze lies about Arizona immigration law (ACLU of Arizona, +Dolores Huerta) - 04/29/10

Earlier today, the American Civil Liberties Union (national and Arizona branch), MALDEF, the National Immigration Law Center, Dolores Huerta, Richard Chavez (brother of Cesar Chavez), and Linda Ronstadt (?) held a news conference in Phoenix to protest the new Arizona immigration law and to announce that they'll be mounting a legal challenge (full press release here). At the event, Alessandra Soler Meetze, Executive Director of the ACLU of Arizona lied about the law: "This law will only make the rampant racial profiling of Latinos that is already going on in Arizona much worse... If this law...

Luis Gutierrez *complains* about Arizona human trafficking sweep - 04/17/10

Rep. Luis Gutierrez offers "Obama Must Act To Ease Arizona's Deportation Panic" (link), showing for the millionth or so time that the far-left has little or no interest in immigration enforcement. The far-left is strongly behind comprehensive immigration reform, something that would supposedly contain increased enforcement. Yet, they support that part of "reform" in completely bad faith: if "reform" passes they'd oppose any enforcement it mandates just as they do now, leading to an eventual repeat of the current situation. After hyperventilating against an Arizona bill that isn't even law yet...

Mary Murguia nominated to 9th Circuit Court of Appeals; twin sister of National Council of La Raza's Janet - 03/28/10

Barack Obama has nominated Arizona judge Mary Murguia to the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. She's the twin sister of Janet Murguia, head of the National Council of La Raza.

Mitt Romney endorses John McCain: "I'm proud to call him my friend." - 02/28/10

Per this, Mitt Romney has endorsed John McCain: Romney, a 2012 presidential aspirant, famously tangled with McCain on the campaign trail in 2008, and has some indirect ties to Hayworth -- Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio, one of Hayworth's biggest boosters, served as honorary chair of Romney's Arizona campaign team in 2008, while Jason Rose, an advisor to Hayworth's Senate run, was Romney's state director. On Tuesday, however, Romney had nothing but effusive praise for McCain, saying "I'm proud to call him my friend."

Arpaio chief deputy claims left-wing conspiracy against dep't; probably not far off - 02/21/10

Joe Arpaio's chief deputy David Hendershott gave a deposition in the racial profiling lawsuit brought by the American Civil Liberties Union and, per this, said among other things: "I believe also that it has become clear that you, (attorney) Bill Strauss, (Phoenix Mayor) Phil Gordon, members of the Anti Defamation League . . . have a political agenda that you are trying to push with this... Your members and others have worked in concert with the Department of Justice in producing what amounts to large amounts of enflamed media that we have learned . . . is basically the only basis that the...

Arpaio deputies to get private training in enforcing immigration law; ACLU outraged (Kobach) - 02/10/10

According to this, all Maricopa County Sheriff's deputies will receive private training "on the authority of local law enforcement to enforce federal immigration law". Previously, just 100 of their deputies had received training from the Department of Homeland Security, but the DHS dropped that last year. Law professor and candidate for Attorney General of Kansas Kris Kobach will be providing the training (with his costs self-funded or paid by an unknown group), causing a meltdown among the supporters of illegal activity: Alessandra Soler Meetze, executive director of the American Civil...

DHS' Morton: defends 287g program; defends Arpaio against claims of racial profiling - 01/21/10

From this: ...During a large protest on Saturday in Phoenix that drew 10,000 people, immigrant-rights advocates called on the Department of Homeland Security to end (the 287g program), saying some Valley police officers are engaging in racial profiling by arresting Latinos for minor crimes in order to check their immigration status during the booking process. But John Morton, the assistant secretary for Immigration and Customs Enforcement (of the Department of Homeland Security), said that is "not in practice what we have seen in the program" known as 287 (g). Furthermore, he said that while...

Sandeep Gopalan misleads, shows fallacy of comprehensive immigration reform - 01/13/10

Sandeep Gopalan of the National University of Ireland takes to the pages of the Wall Street Journal to promote a European Union-wide amnesty program in "Fixing Europe's Immigration Problem/ Without reforms across the European Union, the Italian race riots will prove only a hint of the darkness to come" (link).

DOJ unable to go after Joe Arpaio for racial profiling, goes after him for abuse of power instead - 01/08/10

From this: A federal grand jury in Phoenix is looking at abuse of power allegations against the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office and Sheriff Joe Arpaio. County Communications Director Cari Gerchick told the Phoenix Business Journal Thursday night that County Manager David Smith and County Budget Director Sandi Smith have met with federal prosecutors and will appear before a federal grand jury in Phoenix on Jan. 13. Gerchick said the grand jury is looking at abuse of power charges against the MCSO and Arpaio. Sandra Raynor, spokeswoman for the U.S. Attorney's Office in Phoenix declined comment...

Texting about immigration sweeps might violate law (Arizona; Respeto; ACLU) - 01/04/10

According to this, Lydia Guzman of the group Respect Respeto is texting to a phone tree news about immigration sweeps that Sheriff Joe Arpaio is conducting in Maricopa County, Arizona. The texts are then broadcast to others in the tree: Guzman said she sends the messages to a wide range of groups, including the American Civil Liberties Union of Arizona, Copwatch and various immigrant-rights groups such as Somos America and Puente. She concedes that some who receive the text messages likely use the information to avoid being caught and deported. Per Arpaio: "This little group of people is (in...

Arpaio shouted down at First Amendment Forum; Amanda Terkel cheers; open borders song - 12/01/09

Last night, Arizona State University held a "First Amendment Forum" with sheriff Joe Arpaio being questioned about his relationship to the media and immigration by a professor and two others from that school. The event was interrupted by far-left protesters who began singing parody lyrics of Bohemian Rhapsody, causing the panelists including Arpaio to leave one-by-one. The Dean of the school says (link): "They didn’t shout down Sheriff Arpaio... They shouted down three top-flight journalists who were trying to question him. My personal opinion? I think that’s dumb." The lyrics of their parody...

Peter Wallsten misleads about Lou Dobbs (now an amnesty supporter?) - 11/25/09

Peter Wallsten (formerly of the Los Angeles Times, now with the Wall Street Journal) offers "Dobbs Reaches Out to Latinos, With Politics in Mind" (link), which contains this misleading statement (bolding added): (Lou Dobbs) is working to repair what a spokesman conceded is a glaring flaw: His reputation for antipathy toward Latino immigrants. In a little-noticed interview Friday, Mr. Dobbs told Spanish-language network Telemundo he now supports a plan to legalize millions of undocumented workers, a stance he long lambasted as an unfair "amnesty." Now, to help illustrate why Wallsten is being...

What Brian Stelter and the New York Times don't want you to know - 10/24/09

I rarely leave comments on the New York Times' blogs because they pre-moderate the comments and very few of mine have been approved. Whether the comments contain a link or not, they tend to point out how the author is wrong or isn't telling the whole truth, and in NYT land that's a no-no. So it was on Thursday's "CNN’s Special on Latinos Stirs Protests Against Anchor" (link) by Brian Stelter. Readers of that post might assume that Isabel Garcia is just a "civil rights lawyer"; all he told his readers about her is at [1]. In fact, she's a very strong supporter of illegal immigration who,...

Rep. Jared Polis: 287g caused "sweep of terror", smears Joe Arpaio (still earning his award from Mexico) - 10/22/09

Speaking on the House floor yesterday, Colorado Rep. Jared Polis sharply criticized the 287g program and smeared Sheriff Joe Arpaio.

DOJ investigators pose as reporters at Joe Arpaio press conference? (Je Yon Jung) - 10/20/09

According to this unconfirmed FreeRepublic posting, on yesterday's JD Hayworth radio show on Arizona's KFYI: Sheriff (Joe Arpaio) held a sweep in NW Phoenix, Friday October 16, 2009. He had a press conference after. US Department of Justice Officials (approximately 5) showed up at the conference, UNDERCOVER, POSING AS REPORTERS. When contacted by a Sheriff commander, the Federal Civil Rights officials posing as journalists, conducted themselves "unprofessionally" and "refused to provide official identification. Only one official from the "covert team provided any form of ID when pressed."...

Andrea Nill of Think Progress smears Joe Arpaio, gives false impression using bogus quote - 10/05/09

What impression do you get from this passage from Andrea Nill of ThinkProgress [1]? According to the Phoenix News Times, (Sheriff Joe Arpaio) appeared on KTAR 92.3 FM’s Jay Lawrence Show last night vowing to continue operating his "Hispanic-hunting dragnets," even if it means driving undocumented immigrants back across the border himself: That's followed by a quote from Arpaio, and if you're like me you probably thought "Hispanic-hunting dragnets" might be a quote from Arpaio as well. Whether Nill meant to give that impression or not, it's false. That quote is the characterization of Arpaio's...

Joe Arpaio goes after ACORN over funding (?), Obama administration links (racial profiling case) - 09/18/09

Maricopa County Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio is conducting a bit of a media stunt and fishing expedition (and I mean the latter in a good way) regarding ACORN.

Tides Foundation awards three advocates for illegal immigration; two links to the Mexican government - 09/01/09

The Tides Foundation has announced the recipients of their "Jane Bagley Lehman Awards for Excellence in Public Advocacy"; see the press release here. Each of the three winners will get $7500; one of them is linked to the Mexican government and another's organization allegedly has collaborated with that government:

Immigration Reform Advocates Receive JBL Awards From Tides - 09/01/09

Source: press release located here. See the first item in the history for the full text. SAN FRANCISCO, Sept. 1 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Tides (www.tides.org) hasawarded a total of $22,500 to the 2009 recipients of the JBL Awards forExcellence in Public Advocacy. Tides' JBL Awards honor policy activists andadvocates by recognizing work that demonstrates innovative approaches tosocial change and a deep commitment to the public interest.

ACLU sues Sheriff Joe Arpaio for alleged racial profiling (Dan Pochoda) - 08/19/09

The American Civil Liberties Union - an organization that is/was collaborating with the Mexican government in a scheme that would help that government profit from illegal activity inside the U.S. - is suing Maricopa County, Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio for alleged racial profiling and related issues (aclu.org/immigrants/workplace/40777prs20090819.html). According to the ACLU, a father and son - the first a long-term legal resident, the second a U.S. citizen - were detained by Arpaio's deputies while they were conducting an immigration raid at a business: The lawsuit charges that the MCSO...

DHS blamed release of illegal aliens on Sheriff Joe Arpaio and then tried to shut him up about it - 08/06/09

From this: The spat between controversial Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio and U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) surfaced on July 23 and 24 when the sheriff's deputies were ordered by ICE officials to release illegal immigrants who had been caught in a broader criminal sweep. Sheriff Arpaio complained to the media; a federal spokesman claimed the release was the sheriff's fault; and the sheriff then released audiotapes proving that ICE officials, not he, had ordered the release. Caught looking foolish, ICE officials threatened to withdraw the sheriff's authority to enforce any...

Janet Napolitano of DHS undermines 287g program (Joe Arpaio, Phil Gordon) - 07/13/09

On Friday, Janet Napolitano's Department of Homeland Security announced new rules for their 287g program that allows local police to help in the enforcement of immigration laws.

Obama, ADL, SPLC, Phil Gordon, Catherine Herridge, Shep Smith, Joan Walsh, Chris Matthews, others try to exploit shooting at Holocaust Museum - 06/11/09

Here are just some of those trying to use yesterday's shooting at the Holocaust Museum in Washington DC to score political points: * Barack Obama says: "This outrageous act reminds us that we must remain vigilant against anti-Semitism and prejudice in all its forms". That sounds good, until one remembers things like Rev. Jeremiah Wright, "bitter cling", his campaign's constant attempts to race-bait, his smears of Lou Dobbs and Rush Limbaugh, and how he'd deal with "hate" (see #14). * Josh Gerstein of the Politico in "Attacks validate DHS report, some say" (link). He quotes the Southern...

Janet Napolitano falsely says "crossing the border is not a crime" (+border fence, Arpaio) - 04/20/09

Department of Homeland Security secretary Janet Napolitano appeared on CNN's "State of the Union" with John King and said the following (transcript here): And yes, when we find illegal workers, yes, appropriate action, some of which is criminal, most of that is civil, because crossing the border is not a crime per se. It is civil. But anyway, going after those as well. The U.S. Code says she's wrong (link, excerpt at [1]): sneaking across the border can result in up to six months in jail for the first offense and up to two years for subsequent offenses. It most definitely is a crime; see also...

Pulitzer Prize winners: anti-Arpaio series; New York Times' Spitzer coverage; Obama sycophant; Politifact - 04/20/09

The list of this year's Pulitzer Prize winners is at pulitzer.org/awards/2009. The New York Times walked away with five awards, the most in their history.

George Gascon DC trip paid for by "a group of nonprofit organizations that are seeking immigration reform" - 04/04/09

On Thursday, two congressional subcommittees held a hearing on the 287g program which included the following exchange (link, via this) between Mesa, Arizona police chief George Gascon (an opponent of the program) and Rep. Ted Poe (a supporter): "Who paid your way to get here today?" Poe asked. Gascon replied by repeating the question. "You heard me," Poe said. "Who paid your way?""A group of nonprofit organizations that are seeking immigration reform," Gascon answered. "Would you agree with the statement that we dance with the one who brung us?" Poe said, suggesting that Gascon was...

Maricopa County board delays Arpaio immigration enforcement funding - 04/02/09

While illegal immigration-supporting Dems hold a hearing in Washington DC about the 287g program, Maricopa County, Arizona sheriff Joe Arpaio has problems on the home front (link): The Maricopa County Board of Supervisors on Wednesday voted to postpone the acceptance of $1.6 million from the state to help pay for illegal immigration enforcement by Sheriff Joe Arpaio. The Republican-majority board until now has consistently supported Arpaio and generally agreed philosophically with his viewpoint on illegal immigration. Observers said the decision could signal that the board is concerned by...

Zoe Lofgren, Jerrold Nadler, ACLU try to end 287g program (4/2/09 hearing; Arpaio) - 04/01/09

Two House subcommittees will be holding a joint hearing tomorrow (judiciary.house.gov/hearings/hear_090402.html) in an attempt to block the 287g program that allows local police to cooperate with the Department of Homeland Security to locate illegal aliens. The most famous use of 287(g) involves Sheriff Joe Arpaio; he isn't scheduled to testify, but two of those who are will be opposing his efforts specifically. In advance of the hearing, today the American Civil Liberties Union - a group that's directly collaborating with the Mexican government - called on the Obama administration to end the...

DOJ investigating Sheriff Joe Arpaio over supposed racial profiling (Lofgren, Conyers, Nadler, Robert Scott, ACORN) - 03/12/09

From this: The Department of Justice (DOJ) has launched an investigation of the Maricopa County Sheriff's Office in Arizona following requests by congressional Democrats and allegations by liberal activists that the department has violated the civil rights of illegal aliens. Reps. John Conyers (D-Mich.), Jerrold Nadler (D-N.Y.), Zoe Lofgren (D-Calif.), and Robert Scott (D-Va.) requested the investigation, and activists groups such as (National Day Laborer Organizing Network, NDLON) and ACORN launched petition drives and rallies in support of the probe. The investigation focuses on Sheriff Joe...

GAO report raises issues with 287g program (Joe Arpaio) - 03/04/09

Randal Archibold of the New York Times offers "Report Questions an Immigration Program That Uses the Local Police" (link): A government report questions the effectiveness of a federal program, long criticized by immigrant advocacy groups, that deputizes police officers as immigration agents. The report, to be released Wednesday by the Government Accountability Office, the investigative arm of Congress, says the government has failed to determine how many of the thousands of people deported under the program were the kind of violent felons it was devised to root out... As he later says, who...

Soros-linked Justice Strategies calls 287g program a "failure" (Joe Arpaio) - 03/04/09

Daniel Gonzalez of the Arizona Republic offers "Report: ICE program used by Arpaio a failure" (link): Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio's continuing and controversial crackdown on illegal immigration and the federal program that lets him identify and arrest undocumented immigrants is a financial and public-safety failure, according to a new report. The program, known as 287 (g), has been touted by Immigration and Customs Enforcement as a public-safety measure aimed at removing criminal illegal immigrants. But the Sheriff's Office and other participating agencies have focused on easy...

Judge Mary Murguia in Joe Arpaio case is twin sister of NCLR's Janet - 02/28/09

One of the major things to be worried about it is those who support open or loose borders "infiltrating" our institutions.

Pages