Several conservatives expressed concerns Sunday over President-elect Donald Trump’s announcement of Republican Florida sheriff Chad Chronister to be administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
Trump revealed Saturday in a statement that he will nominate Chronister to lead the DEA in his second administration, stating that the Florida sheriff will work with his attorney general pick, Pam Bondi, “to secure the Border, stop the flow of Fentanyl, and other Illegal Drugs, across the Southern Border.” While Chronister received praise from colleagues and others after the initial announcement, some Republicans have begun to fire back due to his actions during the COVID-19 lockdown.
In March 2020, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office released a press statement revealing that they had arrested local Tampa Bay church pastor Dr. Rodney Howard-Browne on two second-degree misdemeanors for unlawful assembly and violation of public health emergency rules. In a post on X from the Libertarian Party of Mississippi, the group called out Chronister’s decision to arrest Howard-Browne, leading Republican Kentucky Rep. Thomas Massie to respond as well.
“I’m going to call ‘em like I see ‘em. Trump’s nominee for head of DEA should be disqualified for ordering the arrest a pastor who defied COVID lockdowns,” Massie wrote on X.
I’m going to call ‘em like I see ‘em. Trump’s nominee for head of DEA should be disqualified for ordering the arrest a pastor who defied COVID lockdowns. https://t.co/pHSmGr81Tz
— Thomas Massie (@RepThomasMassie) December 1, 2024
Conservative podcasters the Hodge Twins and journalist Mike Cernovich also called out Trump’s choice on X, highlighting Chronister’s COVID-19 stances at the time of the incident.
This guy can’t be the DEA leader @realDonaldTrump https://t.co/OsKOlFmhA0
— Hodgetwins (@hodgetwins) December 1, 2024
Trump’s choice for DEA discriminated against unvaccinated law enforcement officers under his command. pic.twitter.com/xCEiZWYQyX
— Cernovich (@Cernovich) December 1, 2024
Media personality John Cardillo wrote on X that he had deleted his original post praising the Florida Sheriff after remembering that he is a “COVIDian Sheriff who arrested a pastor during services because ‘COVID’ to be prosecuted by Andrew Warren, the Soros funded prosecutor DeSantis removed from Office.”
Deleted my post supporting Chronister as Trump’s DEA Adminitrator pick.
I completely forgot that Chronister is COVIDian Sheriff who arrested a pastor during services because “COVID” to be prosecuted by Andrew Warren, the Soros funded prosecutor DeSantis removed from Office.
— John Cardillo (@johncardillo) December 1, 2024
While Chronister had taken to social media to publicly thank Trump for the nomination and stated that he is “deeply humbled by this opportunity to serve our nation,” podcaster Tim Pool instead called for him to serve prison time.
Let’s revisit this after he serves prison time for conspiracy against rights for arresting a pastor during covid lockdowns https://t.co/Fl4JLCBIzO
— Tim Pool (@Timcast) December 1, 2024
At the time of Howard-Browne’s arrest, Chronister stated that while faith is important and authorities “would never impede on someone’s ability to lean on their religious beliefs as a means of comfort,” those practicing their beliefs must do so “safely.”
“His reckless disregard for human life put hundreds of people in his congregation at risk and thousands of residents who may interact with them this week in danger,” Chronister said. “The River at Tampa Bay has an advantage over most places of worship, because they have access to technology that allows them to live stream their services over the internet and broadcast television for the more than 4,000 members to watch from the safety of their homes.”
In addition to the local pastor’s arrest, the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office released 164 inmates in March 2020 to help slow the spread of COVID-19 at the county jail.
“We want to protect our employees here. We want to protect the remainder of the jail population. We also feel these low-level, non-violent offenders will be better served at home with their families,” Chronister said at the time.
However, only a day after their release, one of the inmates, 26-year-old Joseph Edwards Williams, was arrested again on charges of second-degree murder in connection to a homicide along with charges of felony firearm possession, heroin possession and resisting arrest.
“There is no question Joseph Williams took advantage of this health emergency to commit crimes while he was out of jail awaiting resolution of a low-level, non-violent offense,” Chronister said after the incident. “As a result, I call on the State Attorney to prosecute this defendant to the fullest extent of the law.”
Following the announcement of Chronister’s pending nomination, Howard-Browne released a video interview featuring Chronister, whom he said was his friend.
“Yes, I did get arrested during COVID, but we’ve always been friends and we remain friends today,” Howard-Browne said in the video posted to X Sunday evening, adding that he “fully” endorsed Chronister to lead the DEA.
Chronister said he was proud Florida was among the first states to relax COVID rules. “It certainly was a very happy day when I was able to call the state attorney and say ‘drop those charges,’” Chronister told Howard-Browne in the video.
Chronister and Trump’s campaign did not immediately return the Daily Caller News Foundation’s requests for comment.
Editor’s Note: This story has been updated to reflect comments made on X by Howard-Browne and Chronister.
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