President-elect Donald Trump’s choice to head the Drug Enforcement Administration, Chad Chronister, announced on Tuesday that he will not be running for the position.
Three days after Trump made the announcement, Chronister, the sheriff of Hillsborough County, Florida, declared he would decline his proposed nomination as the next DEA administrator.
After former Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., withdrawn his candidacy for attorney general last month, he is the second Trump administration pick to remove his name from consideration.
The father-in-law of Chronister, a veteran of the Florida police force, is Edward DeBartolo Jr., the former owner of the San Francisco 49ers. Republicans in Florida, including Governor Ron DeSantis, mostly applauded the selection.
However, Chronister encountered a number of obstacles from Trump’s supporters due to his handling of the coronavirus outbreak, specifically his 2020 decision to arrest Tampa-area pastor Ronald Howard-Browne for disobeying lockdown orders. Eventually, the charges were dropped.
“To have been nominated by President-Elect @realDonaldTrump to serve as Administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration is the honor of a lifetime,” Chronister wrote on Tuesday night’s Xon. “Over the past several days, as the gravity of this very important responsibility set in, I ve concluded that I must respectfully withdraw from consideration.”
In order to serve the residents of Hillsborough County, Chronister mentioned the necessity for further work “and a lot of initiatives I am committed to fulfilling.”
A request for comment was not immediately answered by a representative of Trump’s transition team.
Over the weekend, Trump appointed Chronister as the DEA administrator, a position in the Justice Department that needs Senate approval.
In an interview with Truth Social on Saturday, Trump stated that Chronister “will work with our great Attorney General, Pam Bondi, to secure the Border, stop the flow of Fentanyl, and other Illegal Drugs, across the Southern Border, and SAVE LIVES.”
Chronister gave the planned nomination a positive response. As I write this, Saturdayon X, I am incredibly honored to have this chance to serve our country.
In 2017, Chronister was named sheriff by then-Governor Rick Scott, who is currently serving in the Senate. According to the sheriff’s website, Chronister has been employed with the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office for 28 years.
Many Florida Republicans said they understood the reasoning behind Chronister’s withdrawal of his name late Tuesday, after they had previously viewed him as a top-tier candidate for Trump.
According to a longstanding Republican from Florida, he was the focus of the Covid crap. Although he is regarded as a fantastic sheriff here, I believe there were some reasons why he became involved in all of this.
Chronister’s Covid-era record became an immediate issue shortly after Trump nominated him, but he was spared Florida-level opposition since DeSantis backed his nomination.
Republicans in Congress, however, were less lenient.
“A pastor was arrested by this sheriff for conducting services during the COVID-19 pandemic. “Trump appointed him to lead the DEA,” said Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., on X. “I’m glad he stopped taking consideration. He can save himself the next time a politician loses his heart by abiding by the Constitution.
When contacted for response, a sheriff’s office representative sent NBC News to Chronister’s X statement but did not address if Chronister’s decision was influenced by the criticism.
In March 2020, Chronister informed reporters that he had requested an arrest warrant for the pastor because of his heedless disdain for human life, which endangered hundreds of members of his church and thousands of locals who might come into contact with them this week.
Chronister’s withdrawal from consideration for a position during Trump’s second term is not the first time he has done so.
Due to accusations of sexual misbehavior, which he denied, Gaetz withdrew his name from consideration to be attorney general in November.
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