As one of the keys to his vow to bust the deadly fentanyl crisis in America, President-elect Donald Trump announced the nomination of Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister to lead the Drug Enforcement Administration.
"I am pleased to nominate Sheriff Chad Chronister for administrator of the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA)," Trump wrote Saturday night on Truth Social.
"As DEA administrator, Chad 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.
"Congratulations to Chad, his wife Nikki, and two wonderful sons!"
Chronister quickly responded to the "honor of a lifetime" to serve.
"It is the honor of a lifetime to be nominated by President @realDonaldTrump to serve as the administrator of the Drug Enforcement Administration, and I am deeply humbled by this opportunity to serve our nation," he wrote on X.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid far more potent than heroin, leading to more than 100,000 overdose overdoses each of the past three years under President Joe Biden's border policies, The Washington Post reported.
"For over 32 years, Sheriff Chad Chronister has served the Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office, and received countless commendations and awards for keeping his community safe," Trump's statement read. "A proud graduate of the FBI National Academy's 260th Session, Chad is co-chairman of the Regional Domestic Security Task Force for Region IV Tampa Bay, Council Member of the Florida Attorney General's Statewide Council on Human Trafficking, Chairman of the Criminal Justice Sub-Committee, Vice-Chairman of the Hillsborough County Public Safety Coordinating Council, and Vice-Chairman of the Hillsborough County Public Schools Citizen Oversight Committee."
Chronister also is related by marriage to former owner of the NFL's San Francisco 49ers Edward J. DeBartolo Jr., who received a pardon from Trump before he left office. DeBartolo had pleaded guilty in 1998 to concealing an extortion plot, was fined $1 million, and suspended by the NFL, The New York Times reported.
Eric Mack ✉
Eric Mack has been a writer and editor at Newsmax since 2016. He is a 1998 Syracuse University journalism graduate and a New York Press Association award-winning writer.
© 2024 Newsmax. All rights reserved.