Drollinger’s latest expansion plan is the most unusual. On July 18, he traveled to Nicaragua following a personal invitation from President Daniel Ortega and his wife, Vice President Rosario Murillo, to establish a ministry in the capital city of Managua. The presidential couple also invited Drollinger to share a podium with them during the 40th anniversary of the Sandinista Revolution.

In a press release, Capitol Ministries explained it was Ortega who sent a letter to Drollinger inviting him to open a ministry in his government. The letter, published by CM, declared that “we know that if the people God has entrusted with the destiny of a nation are born again, our representatives will legislate according to the Bible”.

But while Ortega professed his faith, a report by the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights charged that “the repressive actions of the State of Nicaragua had left, by June 2018, at least 212 dead, 1.337 wounded and 507 people deprived of freedom.” The report listed the names of each person who died.

By August that year, the commission counted 322 dead, most of them young people protesting alleged government abuse and corruption. Ortega harshly criticized the report, but acknowledged that 128 people had died during the civilian protests.

Despite Ortega’s human rights record, Drollinger accepted the invitation with enthusiasm and without acknowledging the crisis. During the commemoration of the Sandinista Revolution, he said “we would like to thank the President and the Vice President for the opportunity to plant the word of God here, and to begin by growing this Capitol Ministry within the community of politicians”. He also highlighted his close ties to the US government, adding that “in the name of the Bible studies of the White House, in the name of the students of the Bible in the US Senate, in the name of the Representatives of the Lower House that study the Bible, we bring you our peace and our blessings”.