“There’s a new sheriff in town” is a familiar American idiom. It evokes the image of a strong man who has come into a lawless Western town to establish much-needed law and order.
This is a man who would rule with an iron fist, quickly dealing with all “undesirable” characters. But what if the same man promising law and order was lawless himself? In this case, the sheriff would not have the moral authority needed to lead. After all, he would be a hypocrite.
What if this sheriff’s cry for law and order was merely a rhetorical device, intended to send a coded message to his most ardent supporters? Like the sheriff, his loyalists would seek to exercise total dominance over their mutual enemies…
A Compelling Voice 