Chief Barbu admits to being gay

Chief Barbu admits to being gay Pinal County Sheriff Paul Barb has always appeared as a conservative and tough figure, and he is a like-minded person with Sheriff Arpaio of Maricopa County. They are fighting against...

Pinal County Sheriff Paul Barb has always been a conservative and tough person, and he is like-minded with Sheriff Arpaio of Maricopa County. He will never show mercy to illegal immigrants and accuses the Obama administration of inaction on illegal immigrants. In early January, Barb announced his candidacy as the Republican candidate for Congress in Arizona's 4th District. Now, Sheriff Babu has another identity: gay, that is, gay. Barb came out as gay on Saturday following a scandal in which a Mexican immigrant claimed to be the Sheriff's ex-sex partner and said Barb threatened him with deportation if he disclosed their identities. But Barb has denied any wrongdoing and vowed to continue fighting for the Republican nomination. Barb acknowledged it was a tough race, especially in Arizona, a conservative, family-oriented state with large evangelical and Mormon congregations where his gay identity is conspicuous. But he hopes voters will solidly support him. His competitors thought this was impossible. Arizona Sen. Ron Gould said Babb is bound to lose voters who support family values. Barb denied that he tried to threaten Jose. He said the charges were an attempt to harm his political career. Jose provided some photos to New Times, including photos of him embracing Barb, and also used his cell phone to post photos of himself wearing underwear and what appeared to be a shirtless police chief in a bathroom, but Barb did not deny the authenticity of the photos. After taking office as Sheriff of the southern suburbs of Phoenix in 2008, Barb worked with Sheriff Arpaio to vigorously crack down on drug trafficking and human smuggling, becoming a man of the hour in the United States that year. In 2010, he supported McCain's re-election campaign and provided advice on his border security plan. Just before Saturday's press conference, he resigned as co-chairman of the Romney campaign. Senator McCain, a longtime ally, told local television that he considered Barb a friend. "I don't know the details, other than what has been published in the media," the senator said. "I'm sure there will be a full and complete investigation if there are any allegations of wrongdoing. What I can say is that Babu should be treated with the same respect as all citizens until proven innocent." Another ally, Sheriff Arpaio, has shown a distant attitude towards Babu's scandal. "All I can say is that he's the Pinal County Sheriff and he's dealing with his own problems, not mine," Arpaio said. "I don't think I'm involved, and we'll see how Chief Barb handles his personal affairs." Barb has always been a legend to people in this state. He was elected as a city councilor in his hometown of North Adams, Massachusetts at the age of 18. After losing the election for mayor of North Adams in 2001, he came to Arizona and became a Chandler police officer. In November 2008, he defeated the Democratic candidate to become the Pinal County Sheriff.