U.S. President Donald Trump on Tuesday left open the possibility that his doctor Ronny Jackson would withdraw as his pick to lead the Veterans Affairs Department after allegations stalled his Senate confirmation hearing.
Jackson’s nomination ran into trouble on Tuesday when a Senate committee delayed indefinitely his confirmation in light of “new information” it had received.
“We will continue looking into these serious allegations and have requested additional information from the White House to enable the committee to conduct a full review,” Republican Johnny Isakson, the chairman of the Senate committee on veterans affairs, and Democrat Jon Tester, the panel’s ranking member, said in a joint statement.
The New York Times, citing unnamed officials, reported on Tuesday that the committee, which had planned to hold a nomination hearing on Wednesday, was examining allegations that Jackson oversaw a hostile work environment as White House physician, allowed the overprescribing of drugs and possibly drank on the job.
Trump said it was up to Jackson, a U.S. Navy rear admiral who has worked as a presidential physician since the George W. Bush administration, about whether to continue as nominee.
Jackson, right, walks with President Barack Obama in November 2016 at Walter Reed National Military Medical Center in Bethesda, Md. The doctor to presidents George W. Bush, Barack Obama and now Donald Trump is an Iraq War veteran nominated to head the Department of Veterans Affairs. (Manuel Balce Ceneta/Associated Press)
“I don’t want to put a man through — who’s not a political person — I don’t want to put a man through a process like this. It’s too ugly and too disgusting. So we’ll see what happens,” Trump said at a news conference with French President Emmanuel Macron.
“It’s totally his decision, but he’ll be making a decision,” said Trump, adding he stood behind Jackson.
Trump chose Jackson last month to replace David Shulkin at the VA after an official report found that Shulkin improperly accepted tickets to the Wimbledon tennis tournament and his chief of staff made false statements so Shulkin’s wife could travel at government expense.
‘Strong, decisive leadership’
But questions about Jackson’s level of experience to head a large bureaucracy weighed on his nomination before allegations surfaced in the New York Times of improper conduct.
Jackson, a U.S. Navy rear admiral, has worked as a presidential physician since the George W. Bush administration, and has been the lead doctor monitoring Trump’s health since Trump became president.
White House spokesperson Hogan Gidley defended Jackson, saying he had a “record of strong, decisive leadership” and that is what is needed at the veterans agency.
A White House official said the allegations raised against Jackson are unfair and “don’t appear to pass the smell test.”
The official said there will be a discussion among senior officials on possible next steps in the nomination strategy, such as putting pressure on senators to back Jackson.
“At this stage I think we’re full steam ahead,” the official said, adding that the future of the nomination could depend on
whether Jackson has the stomach for a prolonged nomination fight.
Senator John Cornyn, the No. 2 Senate Republican, told reporters his first instinct was to support Trump’s nominee, but he thinks further scrutiny is required.
“I certainly support the committee’s work to vet his background because we need to know the full picture,” Cornyn said.