Governor-elect taps FBI agent linked to anti-Catholic memo as Virginia’s next safety chief

Virginia Democratic Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger has nominated Stanley Meador — who led the FBI’s Richmond Field Office when it produced its controversial 2023 memo targeting traditional Catholics — to serve as the commonwealth’s next Secretary of Public Safety and Homeland Security.

As special agent in charge of the Richmond office, Meador oversaw the division that drafted and circulated the internal memo linking “radical-traditionalist Catholics” with “racially or ethnically motivated violent extremism.”

CatholicVote National Political Director Logan Church condemned the nomination as deeply troubling.

“It was bad enough when we learned the FBI was surveilling and targeting Catholics simply for living their faith. But now the official who oversaw that disgraceful operation is being promoted,” Church said. “This is not accountability, it’s an endorsement. It tells every Catholic in America that violating our civil liberties isn’t a problem, it’s a pathway to advancement. That is outrageous, and it cannot go unanswered.” ---More...