I joined 250 individuals recently for an enjoyable evening celebrating a long-time Fountain Hills resident’s very special birthday. It was, of course, the birthday of soldier; Washington, D.C., and Las Vegas policeman; a very special agent in the FB of narcotics, business owner, 24-year sheriff of Maricopa County, author and our next mayor, Joe Arpaio.

By reading recent letters in The Times, one would think that Joe Arpaio is an ogre of the worst kind and that the last listed elected position would be impossible. Well, it isn’t! That is why local Democrats are nervous. Socialists, establishment Democrats and some establishment Republicans have never liked Joe Arpaio’s unorthodox ways, particularly as sheriff of Maricopa County. Even so, Arpaio had regularly 80-plus percent favorable ratings with people like you and me.

His actions were often bold and sometimes controversial, such as when he arrested Austin Flake, a sitting Republican senator’s son responsible for the deaths, due to heat exhaustion, of 21 kennel dogs. Anyone who really knows Joe knows that he believes there aren’t many crimes more heinous than illtreating animals. Somewhere around the date of the above incident a vendetta was launched against Arpaio. It may not be significant that Senator Flake’s pioneering forbearers, along with the Snow pioneers, started a town north of here called Snowflake.

Joe’s crimes were trying to curtail illegal immigration, drug traffickers and human smugglers. Was he right? Judge Snow didn’t think so at the time; I wonder today what Judge Snow thinks of the border crisis.

Last year, 107,622 deaths occurred from fentanyl and other illicit drugs while Arpaio’s old enemy, the drug cartels, raked in millions of dollars every month. Was Joe right or is President Biden?

Before believing the rewriting of history by his enemies, check out joearpaioformayor.com.