Former White House physician Dr. Ronny Jackson drank and took Ambien on the job, and was accused of making sexually suggestive remarks to women on his team, according to a report.
The accusations against Jackson, who now serves in Congress, were revealed Wednesday in a scathing Department of Defense Inspector General report obtained by CNN.
The report said multiple witnesses described the White House top doc as a boss from hell who made life miserable for subordinates.
“Many of these witnesses described Jackson’s behavior with words and phrases such as ‘meltdowns,’ ‘yells’ for no reason,’ ‘rages,’ ‘tantrums,’ ‘lashes out,’ and ‘aggressive,’” the report said, according to CNN. “These witnesses also described Jackson’s leadership style with terms such as ‘tyrant,’ ‘dictator,’ ‘control freak.’”
The report also raised serious questions about the staunch Trump supporter’s alleged drinking on the job and use of the prescription medication Ambien, which is used to treat insomnia.
It cited several witnesses that claimed Jackson occasionally drank while on duty, a breach of rules that could’ve left the president without proper care.
Jackson was also accused of popping pills on long presidential trips. Use of prescription medication is not specifically barred for the White House physician, but several colleagues said they worried they it could impair his judgment.
The damaging sexual allegations date back to the last years of the Obama administration, when Jackson was accused of two separate incidents of inappropriate comments and behavior towards women on presidential trips. It wasn’t immediately clear why the incidents were not investigated at the time.
Jackson, a House Republican who now represents the 13th Congressional District in his home state of Texas, denounced the allegations as politically motivated smears. He denied drinking but did not specifically deny taking prescription drugs.
“Democrats are using this report to repeat and rehash untrue attacks on my integrity,” he told CNN.
Jackson became a close ally of Trump after the former president took office. Trump sought to elevate him to the position of Secretary of Veterans Affairs in 2018 but the nomination collapsed amid allegations of poor management.
