Trump's Pardon of Arpaio Was a Symbolic Message to His Racist Base
There was really no need for the pardon. Arpaio would almost certainly never spent any time in jail over a contempt of court conviction. No pardon was needed. Pardons are normally given to correct some failure of justice. There was no such failure here, just a blatant violation of a court order. No lengthy prison sentence to be ended. Just a vicious old racist Sheriff who used his authority to oppress and punish people, particularly people of color.
In issuing this unnecessary pardon, Trump was sending a message to his base of hateful racists. That message was: "Carry on. If you get into trouble, I've got your back." It's the same message he delivered when he claimed he'd pay the legal costs for people who committed crimes while campaigning for him. He would never have done that, but he wanted to send that message and give them permission to commit violent acts in his name.
This is Donald Trump. He's all about sending messages to his low-life supporters. He wants to encourage them to attack the "Others" in our society in Trump's name. They are his surrogates. Meanwhile, he continues to promote measures that remove protections from minorities of all kinds and that punish those who come to this country to try to find a better way of life. Trump has a message for his supporters who hate:
"Go right ahead, violent haters. You have my blessing to harm people. I'd do it myself, but can't, so carry on."
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