#ak-al

Morning Digest: Challenger releases a poll showing Sheriff Joe Arpaio trailing in re-election bid

Leading Off: ● Maricopa County, AZ Sheriff: Former Phoenix police Sgt. Paul Penzone is waging a rematch against notorious Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio after losing by a surprisingly close 51-45 margin four years ago, by far the worst showing of Arpaio’s decades-long career. Now Penzone has released an internal poll from Strategies 360 that has the challenger leading the incumbent by a 48-44…

Rep. Don Young (R-AK) on Thursday night stood by his use of a racial slur to describe Latinos, saying that he “meant no disrespect” when he told an Alaska radio interviewer, “We used to hire 50 to 60 wetbacks to pick tomatoes”:

“During a sit down interview with Ketchikan Public Radio this week, I used a term that was commonly used during my days growing up on a farm in Central California,” Young said in the statement. “I know that this term is not used in the same way nowadays and I meant no disrespect.”

As the Alaska Daily News notes, Young “stopped short of apologizing.”

Listen to the interview:

The term “wetbacks” is meant to refer to undocumented immigrants who crossed from Mexico into the United States via the Rio Grande river. And the president of the Hispanic Affairs Council of Alaska, Alaska Daily News that she feels his cavalier use of the term points to bigger problems. “He didn’t even pause. It’s like that’s just what he calls migrant farm workers,” she said.

When it comes to immigration issues, Young’s focus is largely on preventing illegal border crossings. He has also voted to end birthright citizenship.