Joe Arpaio: the Rolling Stone profile

I had a vague idea the sheriff of Maricopa County in Arizona was a blowhard and a fearmonger, but Joe Hagan's profile clearly shows that Arpaio is something much worse.

Arpaio is an unabashed carnival barker. And his antics might be amusing if he weren't also notorious for being not just the toughest but the most corrupt and abusive sheriff in America.

Arpaio's unabashed hypocrisy in pretending to enforce the law while actually pandering to his constituents' basest prejudices (not to mention indulging his own egomania) is stunning. It's not enough for him to harass the brown of skin, either: he's also touchy enough to send his underlings after his critics. He's the schoolyard bully who grew up and learned he could keep preying on the weak if he got a badge.

It all comes back to those voters who keep reelecting him, though. As bad as this piece makes Arpaio out to be, those voters are not one jot better. They know what he's doing and they not only condone it, they applaud it.

(Courtesy of LongReads.)