(RNN) – Rear Adm. Ronny Jackson, the White House physician and President Donald Trump’s nominee to lead the Department of Veterans Affairs, has withdrawn himself from the confirmation process after multiple allegations of improper behavior.
According to the Associated Press, Jackson called the claims against him false and fabricated.
Jackson continues to serve as the White House physician.
Trump nominated Jackson to replace former VA Secretary David Shulkin, who was fired in March.
But accounts of questionable behavior on Jackson’s part emerged after the White House announced his nomination.
Jackson has been accused of recklessly prescribing medication, acting abusively toward colleagues and being intoxicated while on call – in one case being "passed out drunk in his hotel room," when his medical help was needed.
Once he was accused of getting drunk and wrecking a government vehicle. Another time he was accused of getting drunk and banging on the hotel room door of a female employee during an overseas trip.
Jackson was given the nickname "Candyman," for the way he handed out drugs, according to a summary report compiled by Democratic staff on the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee and released Wednesday. The report was based on conversations with 23 of Jackson’s colleagues at the White House Medical Unit.
Jackson has denied the allegations, and said he’s looking forward to “answering everybody’s questions,” according to the Associated Press.
Multiple outlets reported Wednesday evening that Jackson met with the White House press team. White House Press Secretary Sarah Sanders called the meeting a "debrief" after Jackson met with GOP lawmakers on Capitol Hill earlier Wednesday.
President Trump and his aides on Wednesday were discussing the possibility that Jackson could withdraw his nomination, though White House officials said the decision was Jackson’s
The Senate Veterans Affairs Committee had set Jackson’s confirmation hearing for Wednesday, but indefinitely postponed the hearing after the allegations came out.
Jackson also served as the physician to Presidents Donald Trump and Barack Obama. He earned his medical degree from the University of Texas in 1995, the same year he began his active duty naval service. He was chosen as the White House physician in 2006 while deployed in Iraq.
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