I saw on the Today Show that politicians from both parties are saying this is a bad signal for those who believe in the rule of law.

President Trump on Friday pardoned Joe Arpaio, the former Arizona sheriff whose aggressive efforts to hunt down ["hunt down" is an inflammatory expression connoting injustice –ed.] and detain undocumented immigrants made him a national symbol of the divisive politics of immigration and earned him a criminal contempt conviction.

In a two-paragraph statement, the White House said that Mr. Arpaio gave "years of admirable service to our nation" and called him a "worthy candidate for a presidential pardon."

Mr. Trump called Mr. Arpaio "an American patriot" in a tweet later Friday. "He kept Arizona safe!" the president said.

What a joke.  Democrats and others who support sanctuary cities are now for the rule of law.  They couldn't stand Sheriff Joe because he was a very strict enforcer of the law.

Obama pardoned Oscar Rivera, a terrorist, and many other violent criminals – and we heard little howling about the rule of law.

Bill Clinton pardoned and commuted sentences of terrorists and criminals like Marc Rich (probably because of a large donation from his wife).

The day Democrats and others stop supporting sanctuary cities, we will know they actually support the rule of law.  Sheriff Joe was punished strictly because he wouldn't go along with an agenda.

Thomas Lifson adds:

Let's be real: sending an 85-year-old law enforcement officer to prison is a death sentence.  I doubt very much that there is a precedent for imprisoning such a person.

And let's take comfort from the fact that Senator Kamala Harris – a lawyer and former A.G. of California, and the Democrats' hope for an identity politics presidential candidate – unmasked herself as a legal ignoramus in the process of opposing a pardon for Sheriff Joe because he has been convicted of a crime. 

Joe Arpaio was convicted because he committed a crime. He should not be pardoned. https://t.co/YGvQkK6Kae

— Kamala Harris (@SenKamalaHarris) August 23, 2017

Senator Harris obviously does not understand the basic nature of a pardon.  Or else she is opposed to all pardons.