Trump will not pardon Joe Arpaio 'today,' White House says

President Trump is not bringing a gift for a controversial Arizona sheriff as he makes a visit to the state Tuesday, the White House said.

The commander-in-chief will not pardon former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio during his visit to Phoenix, Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters.

“There will be no discussion of that today at any point, and no action will be taken on that front at any point today,” she said.

Some had suspected that Trump would use a Tuesday rally to announce the move after he said last week that he was considering a pardon for his political supporter.

Arpaio, who gained national recognition as an opponent of immigration, faces up to six months in prison for criminal contempt after ignoring a 2011 federal court order to stop patrols designed to look for undocumented workers.

“He’s a great American patriot and I hate to see what has happened to him,” Trump told Fox News.

Arpaio, 85, has maintained that he has not asked for the pardon, and told the network that he would not anything involving him to hurt the President.

He still appeared to have hope on Tuesday, however, telling Vice News "He didn't say he's not going to do it."

"He said 'tonight.'"

The longtime lawman was Maricopa County sheriff for more than two decades until his harsh rhetoric and legal troubles led voters to kick him out in favor of Democrat Paul Penzone.

Before attention over his views on immigration, Arpaio had also been criticized by groups such as Amnesty International for running a "tent city" jail outside during scorching Arizona summers.

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