Trump is likely a fan of Arpaio’s because Arapio is a fan of his—an early supporter who also went all in for birtherism, at one point sending members of a so-called Cold Case Posse to Hawaii to dig up something incriminating about Barack Obama’s birth certificate.
But more importantly, Arpaio represents in miniature what President Trump would like to be more maximally - an authoritarian not constrained by the rule of law.
Like Trump, Arpaio regards reporters, activists, and critics of his policies as personal enemies as well as enemies of the state. The Justice Department investigation found that his department had "engaged in a pattern or practice of retaliating against individuals for exercising their First Amendment right to free speech."
The DOJ investigation found that Arpaio had "arrested individuals without cause, filed meritless complaints against the political adversaries of Sheriff Arpaio, and initiated unfounded civil lawsuits and investigations against individuals critical of MCSO policies and practices."
As such, it is clear that Trump's pardon of Arpaio is an explicit endorsement of racial profiling and extralegal, vigilante policing.
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