Pop quiz: How many branches of government are there?
If you said three — legislative, executive, judicial — congratulations. You have the civics knowledge of an average American fifth-grader.
If you said “Mecklenburg County,” you might be Sheriff Garry McFadden, the top law enforcement officer in Charlotte, North Carolina, and one of the most vocal anti-ICE sheriffs in the country.
This actually happened. In a legislative hearing. On camera. A duly elected sheriff — a man who has made his entire political brand about refusing to cooperate with federal immigration authorities — couldn’t identify the three branches of government or explain which one he works for.
And this is the guy who thinks he knows better than the federal government about how to enforce the law.
The Exchange
North Carolina state Rep. Allen Chesser, a Republican, an Army veteran, and a former police officer, was questioning McFadden at a House Oversight Committee hearing. The hearing was prompted by the tragic killing of Iryna Zarutska, a young Ukrainian refugee who came to America fleeing war and was murdered on a Charlotte light rail train.
Chesser started with what he thought was a softball. A baseline question to establish that sheriffs, as law enforcement officers, fall under the executive branch and have a duty to enforce the law.
“What branch of government do you operate under?”
Simple question. Any high school student could answer it. Any adult with a passing familiarity with American government could answer it.
McFadden’s response: “Mecklenburg County.”
That’s not a branch of government. That’s not even close. That’s the name of the county he works in.
Chesser, clearly confused, repeated the question. McFadden tried again: “The Constitution of the United States.”
Still not a branch of government. The Constitution establishes the branches. It’s not a branch itself.
At this point, Chesser was visibly puzzled. “This is not where I was anticipating getting stuck,” he said.
He asked McFadden if he was aware of how many branches of government there are.
The sheriff’s answer: “No.”
The Three Branches Lesson
Chesser, apparently realizing he was going to have to conduct remedial civics education in the middle of an oversight hearing, laid it out.
“For the sake of debate, let’s say there are three branches of government: legislative, executive, judicial. Of those three, which do you fall under?”
McFadden thought about it. “I believe I fall under the last one… judicial.”
Wrong.
“You are incorrect, sir. You fall under the executive.”
The executive branch. The branch responsible for executing and enforcing laws. The branch that includes the President, governors, and — yes — sheriffs.
The guy who runs law enforcement in North Carolina’s largest county didn’t know this.
Why It Matters
This isn’t just embarrassing trivia. This goes to the heart of the anti-ICE movement and why it’s so fundamentally wrong.
Sheriffs like McFadden have built their political careers on refusing to cooperate with federal immigration enforcement. They claim they have the authority to decide which laws to enforce and which to ignore. They act as if their counties are independent fiefdoms where federal law doesn’t apply.
But they don’t understand the basic structure of the government they serve.
The executive branch enforces the law. That’s its job. That’s the whole point. When McFadden takes an oath of office, he’s swearing to uphold the Constitution and enforce the laws — not just the ones he personally agrees with.
Immigration law is federal law, passed by Congress (the legislative branch) and signed by the President (the executive branch). ICE is a federal law enforcement agency under the executive branch, just like McFadden’s sheriff’s office is under the executive branch at the county level.
They’re on the same team. They’re supposed to work together. When McFadden refuses to cooperate with ICE detainers, he’s not exercising some constitutional right. He’s failing to do his job.
And apparently, he doesn’t even understand what his job is or what part of the government he belongs to.
The Dead Woman
This hearing wasn’t called to embarrass Sheriff McFadden. It was called because a young woman is dead.
Iryna Zarutska fled Ukraine to escape war. She came to America seeking safety. She ended up in Charlotte, in Mecklenburg County, in the jurisdiction of Sheriff Garry McFadden.
She was stabbed to death on a light rail train.
The hearing was about ensuring that law enforcement across North Carolina is actually enforcing the law — including state laws that require cooperation with ICE. Because when sheriffs decide they’re above the law, people die.
Zarutska came to this country because she believed it was safe. She believed the law would protect her. She believed that law enforcement would do its job.
Sheriff McFadden has spent years telling people that his job doesn’t include cooperating with federal immigration authorities. That he doesn’t “have to follow the rules and the laws that are governed by our lawmakers.”
And now a refugee who thought America would protect her is dead.
The “Context” Defense
When Chesser confronted McFadden with his previous statement — that his office doesn’t “have to follow the rules and the laws” — the sheriff claimed it was taken out of context. He said the statement only applied to immigration enforcement.
But that’s not a defense. That’s an admission.
Immigration law is the law. It’s not a suggestion. It’s not optional. It’s not something sheriffs get to opt out of because they have political disagreements with the current administration.
North Carolina passed a state law requiring cooperation with ICE. McFadden spent years defying it. Now he claims he’s following the law — but only because the state forced his hand.
That’s not law enforcement. That’s grudging compliance from a man who fundamentally doesn’t believe in his own job.
The Bigger Picture
Garry McFadden isn’t unique. He’s one of many progressive sheriffs across the country who have decided that their personal politics trump their professional responsibilities.
In sanctuary jurisdictions nationwide, sheriffs and police chiefs refuse to honor ICE detainers. They release criminal aliens back onto the streets rather than cooperate with federal authorities. They congratulate themselves for “protecting immigrant communities” while putting everyone — including immigrants — at greater risk.
And when someone gets hurt or killed, they hide behind claims that they were just following their interpretation of the law.
Except now we know that at least one of these sheriffs doesn’t even understand what the law is or how government works.
If Garry McFadden doesn’t know the three branches of government, what else doesn’t he know? Does he understand the Supremacy Clause? Does he understand the difference between federal and state jurisdiction? Does he understand why his refusal to cooperate with ICE isn’t some noble stand but a dereliction of duty?
Based on his testimony, the answer to all of those questions is probably no.
The Fifth-Grade Test
Rep. Chesser called it “a fifth-grade civics lesson.” He said he wasn’t expecting to have to teach basic government to a duly elected sheriff.
Neither was anyone else. But here we are.
A man who doesn’t know the three branches of government has been making decisions about which federal laws his county will enforce. A man who thinks sheriffs fall under the “judicial” branch has been deciding that immigration law doesn’t apply to him. A man who couldn’t pass a middle school civics test has been positioning himself as a constitutional scholar who knows better than Congress and the President.
This is what happens when ideology replaces competence. When being anti-Trump becomes the only qualification that matters. When sheriffs are elected based on their willingness to resist federal authority rather than their ability to keep communities safe.
Iryna Zarutska deserved better. Mecklenburg County deserves better. America deserves better.
But at least now we know what we’re dealing with. The anti-ICE movement isn’t led by constitutional experts making principled stands. It’s led by people who don’t understand the Constitution at all — and don’t care to learn.