Rep. Steve King, R-Iowa, insisted on Monday the type of profiling the recently pardoned Joe Arpaio engaged in as sheriff of Maricopa County, Ariz., is just.
“There’s a difference between racial profiling and broader profiling with all of the descriptions that are there,” King told CNN Monday evening. “And I say it’s wrong, too, and the Justice Department has issued a directive that says you shall not racially profile if that’s the only component.”
King added profiling was a critical part of law enforcement, which CNN host Chris Cuomo dismissed as oversimplifying the issue.
“I don’t agree that profiling is wrong,” King said. “In fact, if you would take profiling away from the tools of law enforcement, you couldn’t describe a criminal in any way whatsoever.”
On Friday, Trump pardoned Arpaio, who was convicted of criminal contempt of court earlier this summer for targeting Hispanics who he believed may be in the country illegally.
“I don’t agree with him for defying the judge’s order. We also should remember Judge Snow issued an order that was judge-made law, and it wasn’t consistent with federal statute and there’s nobody that can quote a federal statute, a law, against what Joe Arpaio did,” King added. “And he said mistakes were made. That’s how he defined what happened. But I don’t know how you enforce immigration law in Arizona and not have some Hispanics caught up in that effort.”
