Ronny Jackson withdraws nomination for VA secretary

April 26 (UPI) -- White House physician Ronny Jackson, President Donald Trump's pick to lead the Veterans Affairs Department, withdrew his nomination for the post Thursday.

The withdrawal follows days of accusations concerning Jackson's ethical conduct.

Jackson said in a statement that while he expected tough questions on caring for veterans, he did not anticipate having to "dignify baseless and anonymous attacks" on his character.

"The allegations against me are completely false and fabricated," he said. "These allegations have become a distraction for the president and the issues we must be addressing."

Earlier this week, Trump called Jackson "one of the finest people" he's ever met and said he didn't want to put him through a "process like this."

"He's a great man, and he got treated very, very unfairly. He got treated really unfairly," Trump said Thursday. "He's a hell of a man."

A day earlier, Democratic senators released a list of allegations against Jackson compiled by 23 current and former colleagues of the White House doctor.

The complaints described Jackson as "toxic," "abusive" and "flat-out unethical," while others said he'd engaged in reckless prescribing practices and multiple incidents of drunkenness.

Montana Democratic Sen. Jon Tester told CNN that on overseas trips, Jackson would "go down the aisle way of the airplane and say, 'All right, who wants to go to sleep?' And hand out the prescription drugs like they were candy ... and put them to sleep and then give them the drugs to wake them back up again."

One account said Jackson "wrecked a government vehicle" and, on at least one occasion, couldn't be reached when he was needed because he'd been drinking.

Jackson rejected the accusations Thursday.

"If they had any merit, I would not have been selected, promoted and entrusted to serve in such a sensitive and important role as physician to three presidents over the past 12 years," he said.

Jackson was chosen to serve as White House physician in 2006 during the administration of former President George W. Bush, and later served as the physician for then-President Barack Obama.

Trump nominated Jackson for the post last month after the departure of VA chief David Shulkin, who himself had been a target of ethics complaints.

Jackson is the physician who declared Trump "fit for duty" after administering the president's first physical exam.