Allowing unprecedented numbers of unaccompanied minors to enter the United States illegally is part of President Barack Obama's grand plan to overload the system so the government will have no choice but to grant amnesty in one form or another, Arizona's Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio said Friday on
Newsmax TV.
"The executive order on the DREAM Act, you know they get a pass," Arpaio told hosts John Bachman and J.D. Hayworth on "America's Forum." "Who do you think is coming into the country? All the people who qualify for the DREAM Act.
The DREAM Act provides conditional permanent residency to certain immigrants who come to the United States as minors and live here for at least five years prior to the bill's enactment.
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"We have a flood, a flood of people coming into our country here illegally that are going to get amnesty directly or indirectly so you know the game plan," he said. "I have my own idea. It's very bizarre, my own idea. The White House … they knew what would happen, they wanted a controversy so they can either force Congress to do something or [Obama] will shove some more executive orders down our throat. That's what it's all about."
Arpaio, his county's provocative chief law enforcement officer for 22 years, is unapologetic about his stringent opposition to illegal immigration and his directive for his agency to enforce the law. It has resulted in numerous lawsuits against him, including
one from the Justice Department, which in 2012 accused Arpaio of a "pattern of unlawful discrimination" against Hispanics.
Arpaio says the Obama administration is clearly trying to inflict punishment on Arizona in the current immigration crisis.
"Why dump the thousands off right in front of my building almost at the Greyhound bus terminal?" he asked. "Just dump them off there. [Arizona] has been a top target."
The 82-year-old sheriff says he won't be intimidated by the feds or pandering politicians.
"It's a political situation, you know that," he explained. "Everybody worries about votes or getting the Hispanic vote. You can go on and on. They tried to recall me last year, they tried to destroy me a year before, but I'm still around and I'm going to be around many more years, so you just have to fight to do what you feel is right — follow the law and not surrender to politics. A lot of people don't follow the edict that I do."
Arpaio will run again in 2016, he said, warning that he reports to the citizens of his county and no one else.
"They forgot one thing: I'm the elected sheriff," he said. "I report to the 4 million people that live in this county. I take that very serious so I'm going to do what I can do for those 4 million people and if they don't like it, go vote for somebody else."
"They can't get me in the polls. Now they keep suing me, agitating me."
The "world's toughest sheriff" is confident that things will turn around.
"I've been in law enforcement 55 years," he offered. "We go around in circles. It'll come back. Things will be corrected so we'll never surrender."
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