President Trump reportedly asked Attorney General Jeff Sessions earlier this year whether the Justice Department could close the case against former Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio, who was convicted of criminal contempt for disobeying a court order to end patrols that targeted immigrants. According to The Washington Post, Trump was told it would be “inappropriate” to drop the case against Arpaio, so the president planned at the time to issue a pardon if Arpaio was convicted. “We knew the president wanted to do this for some time now and had worked to prepare for whenever the moment may come,” a White House official told the Post. Trump formally issued the pardon on Friday night.
