Trump ally Joe Arpaio Resurrects Obama 'Birther' Conspiracy When Quizzed About Hawaii Missile Scare

Joe-Arpaio
Former Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio announced a bid for Arizona senator on Tuesday. Ralph Freso/Getty Images

Arizona Senate candidate, former sheriff, and Trump ally Joe Arpaio said he was not surprised Hawaiians received a false missile alert Saturday, and went on to again tout the "birther" conspiracy theory about former President Barack Obama.

In an interview with Fox News' Jeanine Pirro Saturday, Arpaio was asked about the incoming missile alert, caused when an official pressed the wrong button and unleashing nearly 40 minutes of panic.

Joe Arpaio on running for Senate in Arizona: "I never had a hero, it took me 75 years to find a hero, and that's @POTUS. So I'm gonna go to Washington, support his agenda, support his policies and they all relate to Arizona." @JudgeJeanine pic.twitter.com/zxrqUc5VKd

— Fox News (@FoxNews) January 14, 2018

"I don't want to get into it," Arpaio said, "but I know doing a certain investigation on a fake, fraudulent government document. They can't even solve that case. They don't even want to look at it. So either they're incompetent or there's something behind it."

Arpaio was one of the chief proponents of the birther conspiracy, maintaining that Obama was not born in the U.S. and is inelligible to serve as president, even sending a team of investigators to probe the discredited claims while sheriff of Maricopa County in 2012.

He has become one of the staunchest allies of President Donald Trump, who launched his political career touting the birther conspiracy, and endorsed Trump on the campaign trail. The president, for his part, issued a pardon for Arpaio last August, after he was found to be in contempt of a court order halting him racially profiling suspects.

Last week, Arpaio announced he would be running for the U.S. Senate, and wasted little time resurrecting the "birther" conspiracy, saying in an interview with WABC Thursday he still believed the birth certificate to be a forgery.

In the Saturday interview, Pirro asked Arpaio for his views specifically about the Hawaii incident.

Arpaio said, "Well, the only thing I'm saying is they can't even solve a phony document. So now they've got a problem. There's something wrong with that government."

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