President-elect of the United States Donald Trump has made a surprise appointment of Chad Chronister, the current regional sheriff, as the head of the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA).
The Washington Post, a daily newspaper in the United States, reported on the 30th (local time) the nomination of Chad Chronister, sheriff of Hillsborough County, Florida, as DEA director, describing him as "a figure who has rarely received nationwide attention."
Chad Chronister, the current sheriff of Hillsborough County, has served in the county sheriff's office for 32 years. County sheriffs, who are autonomous police officers in the U.S., are either elected by local residents or appointed by the governor, and mainly handle crime prevention within the county, jail management, and court security duties.
The nominee Chronister will move from being the sheriff responsible for public safety in Hillsborough County to leading a large federal investigative agency with over 10,000 employees.
The DEA, under the U.S. Department of Justice, was established in 1973 during President Richard Nixon's administration when the U.S. government declared an all-out war on drugs. It is responsible for cracking down on and preventing the manufacture, distribution, and smuggling of various drugs, as well as drug-related money laundering, terrorism, and organized crime. Its budget exceeds $3 billion (approximately 4.2 trillion won).
After taking office, nominee Chronister is expected to focus on blocking the distribution of fentanyl, a drug mainly produced in Mexico using Chinese chemical substances, and on dismantling related organizations.
President-elect Trump announced the DEA director nomination on the social media platform Truth Social, stating that nominee Chronister will "work with the great Attorney General (nominee) Pam Bondi to protect the border, stop the distribution of fentanyl and illegal drugs through the southern border, and save lives."
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