Trump's White House doctor and cabinet nominee 'crashed government car while drunk', claim Democrats

Admiral Ronny Jackson denies allegation, saying he has 'no idea where that is coming from'

Ronny Jackson, the White House doctor and Donald Trump‘s nominee for veterans’ affairs secretary, crashed a government car while driving drunk and was known as “Candyman” due to his prescribing practices, it has been claimed.

Democrats compiled a dossier of allegations against Rear Admiral Jackson that included the claim he gave out such a large supply of a prescription opioid that colleagues panicked because they thought the drugs were missing.

Senators are yet to decide whether to approve Adm Jackson’s nomination, and White House spokesman Raj Shah said aides were “of course” preparing for the possibility he might withdraw.

Adm Jackson, a former combat medic, denied crashing the car, adding: “I have no idea where that is coming from.”

Mr Trump’s press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, said on Wednesday that Adm Jackson had passed “at least four independent background checks” that found “no areas of concern.”

“He has received more vetting than most nominees,” she added.

The allegations against him were released publicly on the day his confirmation hearing was due to have been held. The hearing was postponed indefinitely while the claims are reviewed.

The document also referred to multiple instances of Adm Jackson’s intoxication while on duty, often on overseas trips. On at least one occasion he was nowhere to be found when his medical help was needed because “he was passed out drunk in his hotel room”, according to the summary.

At a Secret Service leaving party, the summary claimed, Jackson got drunk and crashed a government-owned vehicle.

Following a drawn-out confirmation process Adm Jackson is considering pulling out of his bid to lead the US’ second-biggest government agency, The Washington Post reported, citing White House officials.

Adm Jackson has denied allegations of improper behaviour and told reporters at the White House that he was “still moving ahead as planned.”

Earlier this week Mr Trump appeared to suggest his nominee should withdraw, saying the confirmation process had become “too ugly and too disgusting”, and that “if I were him, the fact is I wouldn’t do it”.

Democratic senator Jon Tester admitted not all the claims, compiled by Democratic staffers using interviews with current and former colleagues of Adm Jackson, had been verified.

He told MSNBC: “Am I 100 per cent rock solid sure that he did this? No, but I’ve seen a pattern here that continues on and on and on.”

But his decision to “flaunt” the unverified document was described as “outrageous” by White House legislative director Marc Short, who suggested Mr Tester was using the allegations for political gain.

Additional reporting by agencies