Donald Trump loves Milwaukee Sheriff David Clarke so much that he’s giving him a job. At least, that’s what David Clarke says. According to Clarke, he has accepted an appointment in the Trump administration—where else but in the Department of Homeland Security, of course.
Clarke said he will take a position at the Office of Partnership and Engagement. In that role, he would help coordinate DHS outreach to local law enforcement agencies, according to theMilwaukee Journal Sentinel.
So far, DHS isn't confirming Clarke's appointment. "Such senior positions are announced by the Department when made official by the Secretary," a department spokeswoman said in an email to Mother Jones. "No such announcement with regard to the Office of Public Engagement has been made."
The irony here is that Clarke is terrible at his job. So he shouldn’t be coordinating outreach to law enforcement agencies when he wasn’t good at running his own. He’s currently in legal trouble in Wisconsin for the deaths of several inmates in the Milwaukee County Jail under his watch. He’s being sued for the abuse of pregnant women alleging painful and inhumane treatment while they were incarcerated in the jails, too. And he’s also under investigation for using his power and influence to harass others who simply piss him off in public spaces.
In January, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel published an editorial calling for the sheriff to step down, citing the jail deaths, his habit of attacking his political opponents on social media—which he does on his department's official Facebook page—and the fact that Clarke seemed more focused on "pining for a job in the Trump administration" than on his responsibilities as county sheriff. County auditors have launched an investigation into whether Clarke abused his power following an airplane flight in January when he had six deputies and two K-9 units confront a passenger at the gate with whom Clarke had an unfriendly exchange on the plane.
But being a complete screw up (or even accused of sexual assault) doesn’t seem to be a hindrance when being considered for employment with the Trump administration. In fact, it appears to be an asset. The more mediocre and awful the person, the higher up the job rank is with this bunch. And let’s not forget a major prerequisite for employment for Trump: any connection to Russia and Vladmir Putin. Because, of course, Clarke, too, is a member of the Kremlin klan.
Now that Robert Mueller has been named as special counsel and that there finally is going to be an investigation, Trump may be wanting to do his best to end any appearance of having a connection to Russia. Then again, that would actually be smart of him. And we know not to expect anything remotely intelligent coming from this White House. So even though it has been Clarke who has been blabbing all over the place and leaking his supposed job offer to news outlets, we can expect the administration to follow suit shortly and make a public announcement confirming his appointment any day now.