Trump’s DEA nominee criticized for arresting pastor throughout COVID
A Florida sheriff nominated by President-elect Donald Trump to go the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration is drawing criticism for imposing a pandemic-era prohibition on giant church gatherings, saying Sunday that he was merely imposing the legislation.
Chad Chronister, the longtime sheriff of Hillsborough County, Florida, was introduced as Trump’s choose for the important thing federal company on Saturday.
“As DEA Administrator, Chad will work with our nice Lawyer Normal, Pam Bondi, to safe the border, cease the circulate of Fentanyl, and different unlawful medication, throughout the Southern Border, and SAVE lives,” Trump wrote.
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Chronister, appointed by then-Gov. Rick Scott to guide the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Workplace in 2017, shared his pleasure concerning the nomination, calling it “the glory of a lifetime.”
The nomination drew sharp backlash from a few of Trump’s personal supporters for actions Chronister took in March 2020, when his workplace arrested Pastor Rodney Howard-Browne, the chief of River at Tampa Bay Church, for internet hosting in-person church companies in defiance of Florida’s COVID-19 restrictions.
Chronister ordered the arrest of Howard-Browne, who had overtly criticized the lockdown measures and continued to carry giant gatherings regardless of the statewide safer-at-home order. Howard-Browne was charged with illegal meeting and violating public well being emergency guidelines, however the fees had been later dropped.
Throughout a media briefing, the sheriff later mentioned he had no alternative however to arrest Howard-Browne as a result of “practising these beliefs needs to be finished safely.”
Following the arrest, the Hillsborough County Council voted to reverse its earlier stay-at-home order and acknowledged church buildings as important companies. The council additionally voted towards imposing a 10-person restrict and 6-foot social distancing restriction on church buildings.
Regardless of the dismissal of the fees, the arrest has grow to be a key level of competition for critics who argue that it represented an overreach of authority, significantly on spiritual freedoms.
“I’ll name ’em like I see ’em. Trump’s nominee for head of DEA must be disqualified for ordering the arrest of a pastor who defied COVID lockdowns,” Trump ally and Republican Congressman Thomas Massie of Kentucky tweeted.
The Libertarian Social gathering of Mississippi additionally weighed in on the matter, tweeting, “Trump’s nominee for DEA arrested a pastor for having the audacity to … checks notes … maintain church service.”
Whereas social media lit up Monday with comparable criticisms, others famous Chronister later reconciled with Pastor Howard-Browne, who beforehand warned that Chronister must “cope with Jesus” for his resolution.
The pastor lastly held a gathering in April 2020 with Chronister to debate River Church’s position in reopening Hillsborough County.
Howard-Browne and Chronister appeared in a web-based video Sunday, with the pastor providing his assist for Chronister’s nomination.
As I promised earlier, Right here I’m with my buddy Sheriff @ChadChronister I recorded this tonight earlier than our night service! Please share with everybody – Thanks and God Bless! pic.twitter.com/H9b3eQVRv6
— Rodney Howard-Browne (@rhowardbrowne) December 2, 2024
“Sure, I did get arrested throughout COVID. However we have all the time been buddies, and we stay buddies right now,” Howard-Browne mentioned earlier than providing his full endorsement.
Chronister mentioned that he’s a “follow-the-law sheriff.”
“I used to be following the legislation again then — awful legal guidelines or good legal guidelines,” he mentioned. “However it’s a must to be the sheriff and do your job. … I am proud that Florida was the primary [state] to roll again all these COVID restrictions. It was definitely a contented day after I was capable of name the state’s legal professional and say, ‘Drop these fees.'”
Chronister’s spouse, Nikki DeBartolo, is the daughter of former San Francisco 49ers proprietor Edward DeBartolo Jr., who was convicted in a Nineteen Nineties playing fraud scandal after constructing one of many NFL’s most prestigious franchises.
In 1998, DeBartolo Jr. pleaded responsible to failing to report a felony when he paid $400,000 to former Louisiana Gov. Edwin Edwards in trade for a riverboat playing license.
Chronister and DeBartolo met Trump on the White Home when the president pardoned DeBartolo Jr. in Feb. 2020.
Trump’s nomination of Chronister comes after Trump has already nominated a number of notable cupboard and prime company roles, together with Tesla and X chief Elon Musk, former impartial candidate Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. and former TV host Mehmet Oz. Trump is slated to be sworn in for a second time period in January.
