WASHINGTON − President-elect Donald Trump on Saturday picked a veteran Florida county sheriff to head the Drug Enforcement Administration, a key role in Trump’s war against Mexican drug cartels and fentanyl traffickers that have caused record numbers of overdose deaths in recent years.
Hillsborough County Sheriff Chad Chronister has worked for the county for more than 32 years “and received countless awards for keeping his community SAFE,” Trump wrote in a Saturday night post on his Truth Social platform.
If confirmed by the Senate, Chronister would replace President Joe Biden’s DEA administrator, Anne Milgram, a former New Jersey attorney general who is credited with aggressively combatting the trafficking and sale of fentanyl, a synthetic opioid that is more than 50 times more powerful than heroin.
Chronister described his nomination Saturday night as the “honor of a lifetime” in a post on X, adding that he is “deeply humbled by this opportunity to serve our nation.”
Trump described Chronister as a “proud graduate of the FBI National Academy” and co-chairman of the Regional Domestic Security Task Force for the Tampa region in Florida. He is also a member of the Florida Attorney General’s Statewide Council on Human Trafficking, Trump said.
“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,” Trump wrote.
Chronister appears to be close to Bondi, the former two-term Florida attorney general who Trump has tapped to be Attorney General, the highest law enforcement official in the nation and head of the Justice Department, which oversees the DEA, the FBI and other federal agencies. Trump’s first pick for that job, Republican Florida Rep. Matt Gaetz, withdrew from consideration amid allegations of sexual misconduct, which Gaetz denies.
“Our country is fortunate to have @PamBondi as President @realDonaldTrump nominee for US Attorney General. She is such a selfless servant who will be tireless in keeping us all safe,” Chronister said in a Nov. 22 post on X that included a photo of the two of them together.
Trump signed an executive order during his term in the White House granting a full pardon to Chronister’s father-in-law, Edward DeBartolo Jr., for his involvement in a gambling fraud case in Louisiana in the late 1990s.
Trump also announced Saturday his pick to head the FBI, former Republican House staffer and staunch supporter Kashyap “Kash” Patel, signaling his intention to fire the current FBI director, Christopher Wray, once he takes office in January.
Chronister has a low public profile outside of Florida. But Trump’s announcement was followed by praise for the veteran sheriff by some Florida officials, including Tampa Mayor Jane Castor.
“Much deserved,” Castor said in a posting on X. “An excellent choice by President-Elect Trump.”
A national security threat to the United States
Trump has repeatedly highlighted the opioid crisis during his campaign as one of his top priorities, pledging to fight it not just as a law enforcement problem but also as a top-tier national security threat.
As head of the DEA, Chronister would be expected to play a key role in that effort, overseeing efforts to interdict drugs from Mexico and fentanyl precursor chemicals from China. The DEA administrator also oversees the sprawling agency’s efforts to reduce demand for illegal drugs by U.S. consumers and to help boost treatment opportunities for them.
Chronister will also be thrust into the politics of the U.S. drug war, given Trump’s vow to hit Mexico, Canada and China with stiff tariffs if they don’t agree with this demands that they step up and play a more aggressive role in fighting fentanyl and illegal immigration into the U.S.
