He's Back! (Ronny Jackson, That Is)

Remember Ronny Jackson? A Navy rear admiral, he was appointed president's physician by W in 2006, and kept on by Obama and then Trump. He was quiet, apolitical, and liked by many in the Obama administration. He first became controversial in January 2018 when he gushed about Trump's extraordinary health (preposterous on its face; the man is sedentary, obese, and a junk food addict), "incredible genes," and said "Based on his cardiac assessment, hands down, there is no question he is in the excellent range," and "I told the President that if he had a healthier diet over the last 20 years he might live to be 200 years old." Many people in the Obama administration who had known Jackson defended him at that point because he was well liked.

Controversy boiled over in March 2018, when Trump nominated Jackson, who had no previous managerial experience, to be secretary of Veterans Affairs, a bureaucracy with 375,000 employees. He was assailed for his total lack of experience, and stories came out that he generously doled out prescription drugs left and right, earning the nickname "Candyman," and that he was frequently drunk on duty. Though the allegations were disputed and never really proven, Trump abandoned the nomination.

Jackson retired from the Navy in December 2019 and announced a week later that he was running for a seat in Congress as a Republican (a sitting Republican congressman was retiring). Once seen to be apolitical, he is now an outspoken Trump supporter. Click here for an article by Kevin Liptak at CNN entitled "Former White House physician Ronny Jackson dives headfirst into 'Obamagate' and angers former colleagues."

To the consternation of his former Obama administration friends, he said last week on Twitter, without offering any proof, "President Obama weaponized the highest levels of our government to spy on President Trump. Every Deep State traitor deserves to be brought to justice for their heinous actions." The following day, he doubled down:

On Wednesday, Jackson released a new statement "regarding recent false accusations from former Obama officials and the mainstream media."

"I stand by my comments calling out President Obama's administration for weaponizing our government to spy on President Trump and his supporters," Jackson wrote. "I will never apologize for standing up to protect America's national security interests and constitutional freedoms, even if that means triggering liberals and the 'mainstream media.'"

In his statement, Jackson says he's "proud to call President Trump a close friend."

Former acquaintances feel blindsided: "During my time in the White House Ronny Jackson was my colleague, my friend and my doctor. I thanked him in my book for his good care," tweeted Alyssa Mastromonaco, a former deputy chief of staff. "His comments yesterday and today leave me confused, angry, and heartbroken. I don't recognize this version of Ronny at all."