Arpaio vows to continue birther investigation if elected to Senate
Jan 11, 2018, 5:05 AM | Updated: 9:47 am
(AP Photos)
(AP Photos)
PHOENIX — U.S. Senate candidate and former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said Wednesday that he would continue an investigation into former President Barack Obama’s birth certificate if he is elected into office.
“I started this because a fake document, a government document — I didn’t care where the president came from, I didn’t care at all,” Arpaio said in an interview with CNN’s Chris Cuomo.
"No doubt about it" Arizona Senate candidate, Republican Joe Arpaio says he still believes President Obama's birth certificate is a phony https://t.co/yAUK7FUfix
— Josiah Daniel Ryan (@JosiahRyan) January 11, 2018
“And we had this evidence, nobody will talk about it, nobody will look at it, but anytime you want to come down, we will be glad to show it again. And by the way, you’re going to hear more about this fake, phony birth certificate.”
When asked by Cuomo if he believed Obama’s birth certificate was a phony, without a beat Arpaio replied: “No doubt about it. No doubt about it.”
Earlier that same day, Arpaio said on WABC radio that he wants to get the evidence to Congress so “they can pass some type of law, some regulation, that when someone runs for president, you oughta check their background so this won’t happen again.”
Related: Arpaio will run for Flake’s Senate seat
The former president’s birth certificate wasn’t the only controversial subject Arpaio touched on: In an earlier interview with CNN on Wednesday, Arpaio said he would support a bill allowing Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals-eligible people to remain in the United States if President Donald Trump does.
“Well, first of all, if I was a senator now and the president really wanted this, I probably would back him up on it because I really do respect his judgment,” Arpaio, a Republican, told CNN.
Arpaio’s statement came as a slight surprise. He has taken a hardline stance on illegal immigration in the past and was convicted of criminal contempt of court in a yearslong lawsuit over his controversial immigration sweeps.
However, his words showed he may be softening on the issue, as Trump did. During his presidential campaign, Trump promised to end DACA immediately upon taking office.
He later told Time that he wanted to work on something “that’s going to make people happy and proud” and has since called for legislation written with “great heart” that can be termed “a bill of love.”
Arpaio — who declared his candidacy on Tuesday — said he was not going along with Trump’s thinking simply for agreement’s sake.
“Everybody knows I’m not a rubber stamp,” he told the network. “I don’t have a stamp but I like to get along and argue situations and come to a good conclusion.”
