Sheriff Arpaio heads to Iowa for Perry campaign

PHOENIX - Maricopa County Sheriff Joe Arpaio won't be running his department from his office. Instead, he'll be running along the campaign trail with Rick Perry.

The self-described "toughest sheriff" endorsed Perry on his GOP presidential bid in November saying the Texas Governor stood tough against illegal immigration.

Now Arpaio is joining Perry on his bus tour through America's Heartland one week before the Iowa Caucuses.

As Republicans battle for their party's nomination shots are flying across their respective bows.

In spite of Arpaio's endorsement, Perry has come under criticism by rivals who say his stance on immigration isn't as solid as he leads voters to believe.

Challengers Michelle Bachmann and Rick Santorum both say Perry is soft on immigration.

That's because under Perry's leadership, children of undocumented immigrants in Texas are allowed in-state tuition rates to state colleges and universities.

It's a stance Perry defends.

"If you say that we should not educate children who have come into our state for no reason than they've been brought there, by no fault of their own, I don't think you have a heart," said Perry during a televised debate among GOP candidates.

What would Sheriff Arpaio say?

He hasn't commented on Perry's stance, but he says he does disagree with Perry's take on a border fence.

Arpaio has supported a plan to line the Arizona-Mexico border with a fence.

Perry doesn't believe a fence is the answer.

The two have yet to publicly reconcile that difference in opinion.

Meanwhile Arpaio is facing heat of his own as federal authorities say he violated federal law by mistreating Hispanics in his custody as well as mishandled the investigations of 400 sexual abuse cases.

While Arpaio walks the campaign trail, do you think the allegations against the Sheriff will hurt Perry?