Recording: Omarosa offered $15,000 a month to be ‘positive’
Omarosa Manigault Newman on Thursday released another secret audio recording that she says proves President Donald Trump wanted to silence her after firing her from the White House. In the recording played on MSNBC, Trump’s daughter-in-law Lara Trump offers Manigault Newman a job earning $15,000 a month. The job wouldn’t require her to report to any particular office or have a specific set of duties, other than to speak positively on Trump’s behalf as part of his re-election campaign. Lara Trump, married to Eric Trump, can be heard on the tape noting a New York Times report that suggested Manigault Newman had inside information that could be damaging to Trump. “It sounds a little like, obviously, that there are some things you’ve got in the back pocket to pull out,” Lara Trump said. “Clearly, if you come on board the campaign, like, we can’t have, we got to … “ Manigault Newman interjects: “Oh, God, no.” “Everything, everybody, positive, right?” Lara Trump asks. The secret recording is one of several Manigault Newman released this week to back up her claims in her new book, “Unhinged.” In a written response Thursday, Lara Trump said her entire family was concerned for Manigault Newman after she was fired “because we had no idea about the basis for her dismissal,” but “we still wanted her on our team because we cared so much about her personally.” Lara Trump says that’s why she reached out and offered Manigault Newman a job on the re-election campaign “before we knew anything about the gross violations of ethics and integrity during her White House tenure.” Lara Trump says that the latest tape is a “fraud” and that the snippets of discussion aired by MSNBC “took place in numerous phone calls over the course of several weeks.” “Woman to woman, I shared a connection with Omarosa as a friend and a campaign sister, and I am absolutely shocked and saddened by her betrayal and violation on a deeply personal level,” the president’s daughter-in-law said. The president on Thursday tweeted: “Thank you for the kind words, Omarosa” in a post that included the link to a video, released by the Republican National Committee, that is a compilation of broadcast interviews in which Manigault Newman makes positive comments about Trump. The RNC released the video on Twitter under the headline, “Guess she forgot about these tapes.” MSNBC also played the GOP video for Manigault Newman during its interview with her. A former contestant on Trump’s reality TV show “The Apprentice,” Manigault Newman was one of Trump’s most prominent African-American supporters during his campaign. He hired her to be a White House assistant, earning $179,700 a year as director of communications for the White House office of public liaison. But she was deeply disliked by many of her colleagues and eventually was ousted by Trump’s chief of staff, John Kelly, for “significant integrity issues.” According to other recordings released this week, Trump appeared to be in the dark on her December 2017 firing. And Kelly suggested, “If we make this a friendly departure … you can go on without any type of difficulty in the future relative to your reputation.” Manigault Newman alleges there is a tape of Trump using a racial slur while working on “The Apprentice.” Trump denies this and has lashed out at his former aide on Twitter, calling her “wacky and deranged,” ”not smart” and a “dog.” Republished with permission from the Associated Press.
Omarosa Magingault-Newman is the poster child for demonstrating why Donald Trump needs professional staff
It’s no secret Donald Trump’s campaign and original White House staff was made up of what can best be described as a hodgepodge of questionable talent in staff and leadership. Clearly those on the front line from the beginning were relentless in their efforts, which combined with the right candidate at the right time in history made all the difference in the world but enough already with amateur hour. We need professionals not reality t.v. stars and want to be celebrities working in the White House. The challenge however was that many lacked the professionalism or experience that would generally be required in a national election and the fallout from their flying by the seat of their pants has continued to be felt on a regular basis. Unforced errors that experienced campaign and policy experts would have prevented, or altogether seen coming, have haunted the administration since its earliest days. The problem: The republican primary had so many talented and well known candidates that most A-list, experienced, well known and well respected campaign staff went to others before Trump got into the race. Very few people, including myself, took Trump’s candidacy seriously and most people around the process heaped on the criticism of Trump’s unorthodox and unconventional style and messaging. So when the dust settled and Trump won the primary there were few people untainted with on the record comments or public declarations publicly speaking out about Trump. This left few people with the ability to integrate into his and his leaderships circle of trust for the general election or more importantly to move into critical positions within the White House. Multiple candidates for jobs within both the White House and at federal agencies found themselves having offers receded once Trump loyalists found disparaging remarks critical of him months and even years old. That brings me to today, where the issue of Trump’s staff is back at the center of conversation due to Omarosa Manigault-Newman’s wild claims about the White House and the president while out promoting her upcoming book. She’s been on a tear about the goings on at 1600 Penn. Not that a week has gone by without something in the press about White House staff or members of the president’s cabinet. The media coverage has been relentless as incredibly high staff turnover, as reported by the Associated Press, has given them a lot to run with. Manigault-Newman’s not just stirring the pot with her outlandish claims and the bad guy persona that everyone is used to seeing from her in her reality t.v. appearances — she’s breached one of the most fundamental staff qualities found in politics: loyalty. People within the political process know that trust is so critical to the job that even when you work with or for people you lose trust in, you recognize that you need to respect the office and the institution you’re working for and when your time is up you bow out gracefully. There is no higher honor than to be able to work in the West Wing of the White House. Though to even to be in the EEOB or in an executive position at an agency and to be able to influence national policy one is an honor. When Omarosa recorded her termination by John Kelly, as well as at least one conversation with the president himself, she crossed a line that she can never recover from and she proved that she never respected the people around her or the opportunity she was given. This seems like a good opportunity to point out that what the issue with Omarosa’s presence in the White House was that she and others never seemed to grasp the tremendous opportunity that they were given and used it (or are using it) for selfish reasons. She, like several others before her (anyone remember Anthony Scaramucci?) didn’t take their roles seriously. The infighting of White House staff jockeying for access to Trump or opportunities to hurt personal political foes in the media with damaging leaks are indicative of a greater problem. Her firing and the fallout that is happening around her hiring to start with, is a good reminder that Trump needs more professional staff. Trump and Kelly need to clean house of the problem people, the leakers, the unprofessionals, the backstabbers, the disloyal and those who just don’t see the bigger picture. What’s more they need to bring in stronger more experienced people who can put their heads down and get their jobs done. While the media and Trump opponents seek to vilify those who go to work for for this administration from the first day they walk into their jobs it hasn’t stopped those who know that to fill those positions is to heed a higher calling one of service to our nation. The left says Trump’s staff should be heckled and bullied and belittled. But the fact is that the White House is a hallowed place to work and the work that is done there is critical to every aspect of our nation from national security, to the running the economy, looking for healthcare solutions, addressing our nations failing education system and more. Those who discourage capable, competent people working in this administration are ultimately not doing a disservice to Donald Trump, or the Republican Party, but rather to every individual living on U.S. soil. Trump is our President, much to the dismay of his opponents. Their constant attacks on those who serve in his administration, isn’t going to change the reality that Trump won the election. We as a nation need to take a step back and applaud those who take the jobs that put them on the front lines of criticism and scorn. We need to encourage those who are afraid to take that heat to step up and do so because their service, their wisdom, their professionalism is needed. As hard as it must be to work in such an chaotic environment the costs of having no institutional wisdom and having
Fight fire with fire: opponents borrow from Donald Trump’s playbook
Looking to get ahead in President Donald Trump’s Washington? Borrow his media playbook. With suggestive statements, cryptic tweets, provocative lawsuits and must-see television interviews, Trump’s adversaries are using some of his own tactics to grab — and keep — the spotlight. From adult film star Stormy Daniels to former FBI Director James Comey, each has become a must-see supporting character in the president’s daily drama. At the moment, the most visible is Daniels, who received a $130,000 payment to stay silent about an alleged affair with Trump and is now seeking to invalidate a non-disclosure agreement. She and her attorney Michael Avenatti have teased out details of her relationship with Trump for weeks, with Avenatti giving explosive interviews almost daily and Daniels taunting the president on social media. Avenatti and Daniels have also hinted she might have proof of the affair. Avenatti tweeted a photo of a CD-Rom that purported to contain evidence. And when Daniels was asked on CBS’ “60 Minutes” if she had texts, images or other items, she replied: “I can’t answer that right now.” It was, of course, the kind of cliffhanger Trump has perfected. He mastered the art of the tease, building suspense in the name of more attention, long before he ran for office. He’s employed similar tactics in the White House, bringing reality show stylings to the often mundane functions of government. “He does like to create some mystery around the great Oz behind the curtain,” said George Rush, former gossip columnist at the New York Daily News. As a Manhattan real estate developer, Trump dished out news scoops and gossip items — sometimes about his properties, sometimes about his personal life — in order to boost his own celebrity and interest in his buildings. He’d play one New York tabloid off the other to increase the buzz for his brand. He took it further as the star of “The Apprentice,” a reality TV show that portrayed Trump as America’s CEO, and built suspense by firing a cast member each week. Now in the White House, Trump plays every decision for maximum suspense. He paraded prospective Cabinet secretaries before a press pack at his private golf club and through the lobby of his Manhattan skyscraper. He’s dragged out global policy decisions, tossing out a “stay tuned” last fall when asked if he’d negotiate with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. And he has kept Washington guessing on how he would respond to the investigations of Russian election meddling, often employing the same suspenseful, and perhaps ominous, catchphrase: “We’ll see what happens.” “Trump helped create an atmosphere of media chaos,” said Jeffrey McCall, a communications professor at DePauw University. “Into that atmosphere you have any number of people wanting to show up.” Indeed, Daniels’ lawyer has become a daily presence on cable TV, seeming almost to taunt the president and daring Trump to respond. Her “60 Minutes” interview came just days after former Playboy model Karen McDougal tearfully told CNN about a monthslong affair with Trump that she described as a “real relationship.” McDougal has filed suit in Los Angeles seeking to invalidate a confidentiality agreement with American Media Inc., the company that owns the supermarket tabloid National Enquirer. A third woman is also taking Trump on in court. A New York City judge has ruled that a defamation lawsuit by Summer Zervos, a former contestant on “The Apprentice,” can move forward while the president is in office. Zervos has accused Trump of unwanted sexual contact in 2007 after she had appeared on the show with him, and sued after he dismissed the claims as made up. Her lawyers have said they want to depose Trump. Then there’s Comey, the former FBI director who was fired by Trump last year. Comey has an upcoming book, “A Higher Loyalty,” which has already topped Amazon.com’s best-seller list. He’s been keeping interest alive on Twitter and has a series of high-profile interviews set up. In February, Comey tweeted a picture of himself in a recording booth and said: “Lordy, this time there will be a tape. Audio book almost finished.” It was a reference to one of Trump’s teases — a tweet he sent out, saying Comey “better hope that there are no ‘tapes’ of our conversations before he starts leaking to the press!” Eventually Trump acknowledged that he did not tape any conversations. “Comey, he hasn’t been just a flash in the pan,” said McCall. “Comey, he keeps surfacing, he disappears from the agenda and he finds a way to get back in.” Other Trump-land characters seeking the spotlight include former aide Omarosa Manigault Newman, who exited the White House recently and headed straight for “Celebrity Big Brother,” where she suggested she was thinking of writing a tell-all book. Offering a mantra for the Trump era, she said: “I have to tell my truth. I’m tired of being muted.” Republished with the permission of the Associated Press.
