White House April 24, 2018

Trump Nudges Ronny Jackson To Withdraw As VA Secretary Nominee

WASHINGTON, DC - APRIL 16: Physician to the President U.S. Navy Rear Admiral Ronny Jackson meets with Senate Veterans Affairs Committee Chairman Johnny Isakson (R-GA) in his office in the Russell Senate Office Building on Capitol Hill April 16, 2018 in Washington, DC. President Donald Trump nominated Jackson, his personal doctor at the White House, to be the new Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs after Trump fired David Shulkin on March 28. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Donald Trump says Ronny Jackson will make the decision as to whether he will pull his name out of the running to head the Department of Veterans Affairs. This comes after allegations surfaced that, as the New York Times reports, Jackson “oversaw a hostile work environment as the White House physician and allowed the overprescribing of drugs, according to congressional officials briefed on the committee’s work. They have also received claims that Dr. Ronny L. Jackson drank too much on the job.”

The Wall Street Journal also reported that as a result of these allegations, Jackson’s confirmation hearing, set to start tomorrow, is postponed indefinitely.

While holding a news conference today with French President Emmanuel Macron, Trump addressed Jackson’s nomination and made it seem like his days, even hours as the VA nominee, are numbered.

BREAKING: President Trump says that he wouldn't proceed with the nomination process if he were VA secretary-nominee Ronny Jackson, but the decision on whether to proceed is "totally [Jackson's] decision" and Jackson will be making a decision. pic.twitter.com/Uw9CnIO5qX

— NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt (@NBCNightlyNews) April 24, 2018

Listening to Trump on Dr Jackson, is it me or does is sound like Ronny Jackson is done done done? "I don't want to put a man through a process like this. It's too disgusting."

— Katy Tur (@KatyTurNBC) April 24, 2018

Trump just gave Dr. Ronny Jackson a ton of room to bow out, while putting possible nomination withdrawal on him rather than potentially flawed White House vetting system

— Jonathan Lemire (@JonLemire) April 24, 2018

Trump may want to have a conversation with Jackson though. Early this afternoon Jackson seemed to indicate he has no plans to pull his name from the running.

Ronny Jackson told reporters that he wants to move forward with his hearing, and Trump won’t ask him to withdraw. So that means that the controversy over his nomination will continue to linger as senators investigate the matter, delaying hearing til May at earliest

— Manu Raju (@mkraju) April 24, 2018