Rep. Ronny Jackson of Texas hurled obscenities at police and threatened to report them to the governor after he was brought to the ground by officers during an argument outside a rodeo last month, newly released video shows.
The July 29 incident in White Deer, a small town near Amarillo, began when Jackson, a former White House physician, approached a teenager who was having seizures near the rodeo stage.
Body camera video provided by the Texas Department of Public Safety shows several officers bringing the Republican congressman to the ground and putting him in handcuffs before helping him to his feet after the teen was taken away on a stretcher by emergency medical personnel.
Much of the 31-minute video lacks audio, but at one point, Jackson can be heard arguing with a state trooper while jabbing his finger in the air.
The trooper said Jackson was repeatedly told to step away so emergency medical crews could treat the teen.
“The doctor raised his voice…and would not listen to my command,’’ Trooper Cade Young wrote in an email after the incident, which was provided the Texas Department of Public Safety. “I raised my voice in return and directed him to get back. The doctor then became agitated and [stated] he would F me up.”
Jackson told police he is an emergency room physician and was just trying to help in a crisis.
“I’m going to call the governor tomorrow and I’m going to talk to him about this [expletive], because this is [expletive] ridiculous,” Jackson could be heard shouting in the 31-minute video.
“You are a f–ing full-on d—!” Jackson then told the trooper after being brought off the ground. “You better recalculate, m—f—!”
In Young’s email, he said he did apologize to Jackson afterward.
“I gave him an apology, however, I explained to him that when EMS is on scene and multiple individuals are telling you to get back, then move,” Young wrote. “I believe Ronnie Jackson had been drinking due to his belligerent actions. A lady approached me shortly after, who is believed was Mr. Jackson’s assistant, and asked for my name and badge number to which I provided. The patient was taken by EMS for treatment at a local hospital.”
Late Monday, Jackson responded to the video’s release.
“I’m glad the video is out,” he wrote on X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter. “It shows the incompetence of the authorities and their complete disregard for the young girl in distress. We have the best Sheriffs in the country here in the panhandle and north Texas. Unfortunately, the Sheriff in Carson County is not among them.”
“I will apologize for my language, but I will not apologize for getting upset & speaking my mind considering the circumstances. If I had to do it again, I would still step up & act in a life-threatening situation. I will ALWAYS help someone in need. I WILL NOT apologize for that,” he said.
Jackson, who is serving his second term, was chief White House physician in 2018, when then-President Donald Trump nominated him to be Veterans Affairs secretary. Jackson withdrew his name from consideration amid allegations that he abused alcohol and mishandled prescription drugs. He said at the time the charges were “completely false and fabricated.”
The post Police video shows Rep. Ronny Jackson handcuffed, cursing officers appeared first on Roll Call.
