Shortly after President Trump posted a link for tickets to a rally in Phoenix, the city's mayor issued a statement asking the president not to come, saying, "our nation is still healing from the tragic events in Charlottesville."
Mayor Greg Stanton continued, "If President Trump is coming to Phoenix to announce a pardon for former Sheriff Joe Arpaio, then it will be clear that his true intent is to enflame emotions and further divide our nation."
Stanton, a Democrat, is in his second term as Phoenix's mayor, having won re-election last November.
Trump's announcement of an Aug. 22 rally at the Phoenix Convention Center didn't mention Arpaio, but it immediately renewed speculation that he might use the event to pardon the controversial former sheriff who became famous for his tough stance on illegal immigration.
Trump's responses to the violence at a white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, have been widely criticized. After a deadly attack led to a murder charge and prompted his fellow Republicans to decry domestic terrorism, the president said there was "blame on both sides."