Anyone that is a regular reader here knows that I am a staunch supporter of Gun Owners of America. The NRA, while good, all to often pussyfoots around or compromises. Something that I for one refuse to do when it comes to our rights. Read and enjoy!
by Tim Macy, GOA Vice-Chairman
With all the nonsense being uttered by political leaders who are blaming American gun owners for the violence in Mexico, it’s refreshing to hear at least one elected official offer some common sense: Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County, Arizona.
Sheriff Arpaio takes his oath of office to protect and defend the U.S. Constitution seriously. He is also fully committed to doing his part to protect our homeland from people who are here illegally. In fact, the Sheriff would make quite an effective Director of Homeland Security.
Employing more than 3,000 people, Arpaio runs the nation’s third largest Sheriff’s office in the fourth most populous county. He has gained fame over the years for tough, no-nonsense law-enforcement tactics.
When faced with a shortage of cells, Arpaio bought army surplus tents and surrounded them with a barbed wire fence. He also upset the soft-on-crime crowd by “outrageous” actions such as banning smoking and pornography and requiring inmates to wear pink underwear. And he actually makes prisoners work on roads and other manual labor. Inmates are in prison, after all, not in day care.
Arpaio is most well known for his strong stance against illegal immigration. In 2005, Arizona made smuggling illegal aliens a state felony. That action empowered officers such as Sheriff Arpaio to enforce immigration law, something at which the federal government has failed miserably.
But perhaps what enrages the anti-gun liberal establishment the most — though it almost never makes the news — is that Sheriff Arpaio actually believes in the Second Amendment and he trusts average citizens with firearms! Arpaio deputized citizen volunteers from every walk of life and income bracket. These citizen-volunteers patrol malls, arrest graffiti violators, dead beat parents, and even illegal aliens. The volunteers furnish their own airplanes, jeeps and horses — and they are armed. [Read more about Sheriff Joe!]
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