How Will the Supreme Court Respond to the Arpaio Pardon?
Though its major import is President Trump’s official endorsement of racist discrimination in law enforcement, a flagrant contempt for judges is the subtext.
In the wake of President Trump’s pardon of Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio, reporters are likely to hear words as harsh as “disturbed” and “concerned“ floated by anonymous leaders of the president’s party on Capitol Hill.
There will be few if any leaks from the Supreme Court. But one must wonder what messages the justices are getting from Trump’s extraordinary pardon. Though its major import is Trump’s official endorsement of racist discrimination in law enforcement, a flagrant contempt for judges and courts is the subtext. The issue in the Arpaio case was the very integrity of the federal judiciary. He was not convicted of an ordinary crime, but of deliberately disobeying a federal court order and
