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CNN: Pentagon watchdog report finds Ronny Jackson drank on duty, harassed staff as WH physician

03 March 2021
 Dan Ackermann

Rep. Ronny Jackson (R-Texas) allegedly made "sexual and denigrating" comments about a female staffer, drank alcohol and took sleeping medication while working as White House physician, according to an official report obtained by CNN Tuesday night.

Driving the news: The Department of Defense inspector general's report stems from a years-long investigation. Jackson has called the allegations "false and fabricated."

  • The report covers his time as White House physician during the Obama and Trump administrations, and it's based on official documents and interviews with 78 witnesses, per CNN.

Zoom in: Among the allegations are that Jackson was known for "yelling, screaming, cursing, or belittling subordinates," drinking while on presidential trips in violation of protocol and taking Ambien on long flights while on duty, according to CNN.

  • The report is expected to be publicly released on Wednesday.

What they're saying: Jackson, who was elected to the House last November, said in an emailed statement that Democrats were using the report "to repeat and rehash untrue attacks on my integrity."

  • He said he was the "subject of a political hit job" three years ago and that today, the inspector general's report has "resurrected those same false allegations from my years with the Obama Administration because I have refused to turn my back on President Trump."
  • "I'm proud of the work environment I fostered under three different Presidents of both parties," Jackson added.
"I flat out reject any allegation that I consumed alcohol while on duty. I also categorically deny any implication that I was in any way sexually inappropriate at work, outside of work, or anywhere with any member of my staff or anyone else. That is not me and what is alleged did not happen."

Of note: Jackson withdrew his nomination as then-President Trump's nominee for Veterans Affairs secretary in 2018 because he said the original allegations about him had "become a distraction for this President."

  • Representatives for the inspector general did not immediately respond to Axios' request for comment.

Editor's note: This article has been updated with new details throughout.

Transcripts show George Floyd told police "I can't breathe" over 20 times

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Newly released transcripts of bodycam footage from the Minneapolis Police Department show that George Floyd told officers he could not breathe more than 20 times in the moments leading up to his death.

Why it matters: Floyd's killing sparked a national wave of Black Lives Matter protests and an ongoing reckoning over systemic racism in the United States. The transcripts "offer one the most thorough and dramatic accounts" before Floyd's death, The New York Times writes.

The state of play: The transcripts were released as former officer Thomas Lane seeks to have the charges that he aided in Floyd's death thrown out in court, per the Times. He is one of four officers who have been charged.

  • The filings also include a 60-page transcript of an interview with Lane. He said he "felt maybe that something was going on" when asked if he believed that Floyd was having a medical emergency at the time.

What the transcripts say:

  • Floyd told the officers he was claustrophobic as they tried to get him into the squad car.
  • The transcripts also show Floyd saying, "Momma, I love you. Tell my kids I love them. I'm dead."
  • Former officer Derek Chauvin, who had his knee on Floyd's neck for over eight minutes, told Floyd, "Then stop talking, stop yelling, it takes a heck of a lot of oxygen to talk."

Read the transcripts via DocumentCloud.