Inside Politics

NBC News reported Sunday a source had confirmed that Sheriff Joe Arpaio of Maricopa County, Ariz., will endorse GOP presidential hopeful Rick Perry this week.

The network said Mr. Arpaio is expected to campaign with Mr. Perry in New Hampshire this week.

Mr. Perry’s campaign has lost traction with many in the GOP base over what some consider a “soft” position on illegal immigrants, who are eligible for in-state college tuition in Texas under a law signed by the Texas governor.

Sheriff Arpaio has a national reputation as a no-nonsense backer of tough immigration laws and as a supporter of Arizona’s tough anti-illegals law, which is being challenged by the Obama administration’s Justice Department.

CONGRESS

Schumer: Democrats to push extension of payroll-tax cut

Appearing on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday, Sen. Charles E. Schumer, New York Democrat, said Senate Democrats will put forward a plan to extend the payroll-tax cut into 2012 this week, paid for by a surtax on those with incomes greater than $1 million.

Mr. Schumer added that Democrats would keep introducing the payroll-tax cut if it fails this week - but indicated his party is willing to negotiate other “pay-fors” with Republicans if necessary.

Americans for Tax Reform President Grover Norquist said on the same program that he is not opposed to extending the tax cut, but he indicated he would be opposed to a new tax on millionaires to pay for it.

IRAN-CONTRA

Prosecutor: Reagan, Bush not guilty of crime

One of the prosecutors who investigated the Iran-Contra affair concluded two decades ago that neither Ronald Reagan nor George H.W. Bush was criminally liable in the scandal that tarnished the presidencies of both men, according to reports made public Friday.

Associate independent counsel Christian Mixter reached that conclusion in 1991 even though he found that President Reagan was briefed in advance about every weapons shipment sold to Iran in the arms-for-hostages deals in 1985-86. In a separate report on Mr. Bush, Mr. Mixter wrote that the then-vice president was chairman of a committee that recommended mining the harbors of Nicaragua in 1983.

Mr. Mixter’s reports were obtained through a Freedom of Information Act request from the National Security Archive, a nonprofit research group, which released them on the 25th anniversary of the Iran-Contra scandal. At a Nov. 25, 1986, White House news conference, Reagan and then-Attorney General Edwin Meese III disclosed that money from the arms sales to Iran had been diverted to the Contra guerrillas fighting the leftist government of Nicaragua after Congress had cut off military aid to the rebels.

Mr. Mixter concluded it would be difficult to prosecute Reagan for violating the Arms Export Control Act mandating congressional notification of arms transfers through a third country - Israel in the case of the Reagan White House’s secret arms sales to Iran in 1985. The reason, said Mr. Mixter, was that Mr. Meese had told Reagan the National Security Act could be invoked to supersede the export-control act.

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