What do people from the Phoenix Metropolitan Area think about Joe Arpaio? (Maricopa: law, legal)

[BurtsBees]

Originally Posted by SpeedyAZ

I think he's great, he cracks down on the illegals and business that hire them. He is doing what mny tax dollars are paying him to do and he isn't trying to win over voters by making promises he doesn't intend to keep. If he says he's going to do something, HE DOES IT! Couldn't have a better man in office, in my opinion.

Yep. Sad to see how liberal people are becoming. Support the criminals! WOOO!

[miamiman]

He's a dictator and a disgrace. Thankfully, many of the newcomers to Maricopa County will change the narrow-minded, shoot 'em up atmosphere that has prevailed here for so long. This is not the set of a Wild West movie. Maricopa County is the fourth most populous county in the United States. We have no room for vigilante justice anymore. Hopefully he gets voted out soon.

[SpeedyAZ]

He's a dictator and a disgrace. Thankfully, many of the newcomers to Maricopa County will change the narrow-minded, shoot 'em up atmosphere that has prevailed here for so long. This is not the set of a Wild West movie. Maricopa County is the fourth most populous county in the United States. We have no room for vigilante justice anymore. Hopefully he gets voted out soon.

He won't be, in the 2008 election he still won by 56% and neither the Libertarian nor Democratic candidate came close to that percentage in the polls. I feel he'll be the Maricopa County Sheriff until he retires and I hope that day is many years away. If it weren't for such a great man in office, I feel the illegals would be taking over Phoenix.

[miamiman]

Originally Posted by SpeedyAZ

He won't be, in the 2008 election he still won by 56% and neither the Libertarian nor Democratic candidate came close to that percentage in the polls. I feel he'll be the Maricopa County Sheriff until he retires and I hope that day is many years away. If it weren't for such a great man in office, I feel the illegals would be taking over Phoenix.

56% really isn't that impressive. That means that 44% of voters were dissatisfied. He's as old as dust, and has made a mockery of the criminal justice system of the United States. His ploys to carry criminals on the light rail and his show on FOX Reality all point to his disregard for the modern America criminal justice system.

Illegals would not be "taking over Phoenix" if Joe wasn't sheriff. Tucson has a much more level-headed sheriff and there is very little issue with drop houses or illegals "taking over" (whatever that means).

As old as he is, his time is coming to a close. I doubt there are any people out there as crazy as he is that will fill his spot. Hopefully we can get someone in who can reduce crime while avoiding a Wild West system of justice.

[joninaz]

He's great in many ways, but horrible in others.

You want a dog that aggresively protects the yard, but you don't want a dog that bites the visiting relatives.

It's great that he is tough on crime and I think the pink undies, etc. are great publicity. But he doesn't seem to know how (or his handlers) of knowing when to temper his authority.

Arresting newspaper publishers for a story he didn't like was absolutley idiotic. Refusing press access to media who don't tow the line is also just as bad. He works for the public and thus is subject to public information laws and scrutiny from press. Like it or not, that's the name of the game.

[D-Towner]

Originally Posted by joninaz

He's great in many ways, but horrible in others.

You want a dog that aggresively protects the yard, but you don't want a dog that bites the visiting relatives.

It's great that he is tough on crime and I think the pink undies, etc. are great publicity. But he doesn't seem to know how (or his handlers) of knowing when to temper his authority.

Arresting newspaper publishers for a story he didn't like was absolutley idiotic. Refusing press access to media who don't tow the line is also just as bad. He works for the public and thus is subject to public information laws and scrutiny from press. Like it or not, that's the name of the game.

I like your level headed analysis.

[azriverfan.]

My original response was not really answering the question and I was providing my opinion of Sherrif Joe instead. To answer the question, I genuinely believe the public tolerates Sherif Joe. I think it's a case of chooing the lesser of two evils. The public recognizes he is uncouth but are too afraid to vote for anyone else out of fear that the illegal immigration situation will become worse if he isn't in office. And although he is still popular, his acceptance in the community has steadily declined over the years. Initially, he was recognized as being tough on crime and was less involved with the illegal immigration issue. In the last 4-5 years, Sherrif Joe has become more visible in the immigration issue and has isolated many of his former supporters due to impression that he racially profiles and has committed actions that can be interpreted as being racist. Others have grown to dislike him for his increased publicity which many feel is sensationalist. In the last election, he won by 11% margin which is significant. Of course others will argue that Dan Saban, the person Sherrf Joe ran against, was a controversial figure himself and that Sherrif Joe's margin of victory has declined and wasn't teh sweep it once was in the past. Overall, the majority of Maricopa county residents support him whether or not they embrace him personally.

I used to support him but I've become disenchanted with him because of his celebrity. I think he is more concerned with his own fame than fighting crime even going so far as to have his own on-going reality television show. The county has also paid millions due to lawsuits as a result of his poor judgement. I've also spoken with police officers who have negative things to say about him. Their criticisms generally take aim at his failure to enforce the law in the rural areas just outside the urban areas of the county where most of the illegal immigration trafficking occurs. They cite that Sheriff Joe instead conflicts with the police through these unnannounced publicized raids.

[azriverfan.]

Originally Posted by SpeedyAZ

I think he's great, he cracks down on the illegals and business that hire them. He is doing what mny tax dollars are paying him to do and he isn't trying to win over voters by making promises he doesn't intend to keep. If he says he's going to do something, HE DOES IT! Couldn't have a better man in office, in my opinion.

That's just it, he doesn't crack down on illegals and businesses other that some token moments on television. He spends most of his time promoting himself. Let's see from Jailcam to the reality television show "Smile You're Under Arrest" to the appearances on talk shows to pink underwear incident...I could go on. Big deal if he has one or two raids on television. What the heck is he doing the rest of the time? Oh that's right, appearing on television, going to Honduras, writing books... Sheriff Joe is just celebrity and a figure head. Speaking of tax dollars, he has wasted your tax dollars as Maricopa county has paid millions in lawsuits because of poor judgement on behalf of the Sheriff.

I have no problem voting for a right wing conservative hard !@# but just give me one who will actually do his job and not some buffoon who talks a big game on television and does nothing in reality. Seriously, I would vote for you or any person on this thread who said they would fight crime and be tough on illegals because at least, I know you guys would be sincere.

[las vegas drunk]

I got sentenced to one day in Joe Arpaio's tent city in July. The high was 118 degrees and it was not fun to say the least.

[Woody7]

So arresting illegal Mexican Nationals is narrow minded, god help Us.