Omarosa Manigault Newman brought tapes to her sit-down interview on "Meet the Press" Sunday. The former White House staffer indicated she has numerous audio recordings from her time in the Trump administration. She even has a secret recording of a conversation with General John Kelly on the day of her firing.
"It's very, very important I think that you understand there are some serious legal issues," Kelly can be heard saying in the audio.
Omarosa is making the media rounds this week to tout her new book: "Unhinged: An Insider’s Account of the Trump White House." Omarosa claims she was threatened by the White House before her departure and was told to leave quietly. She also revealed that her firing occurred in the Situation Room, a startling revelation considering Omarosa was able to record that firing.
"They take me into the Situation Room, the doors are locked, they tell me I can't leave and they start to threaten me, put fear in me, to put me under duress," she told NBC's Chuck Todd on Sunday.
This is crazy: Omarosa secretly recorded Chief of Staff John Kelly IN THE SITUATION ROOM pic.twitter.com/08AWjEpqJb
— Robert Maguire (@RobertMaguire_) August 12, 2018
Omarosa said she wanted to share the audio to debunk stories that she charged the Oval Office when she was let go. Omarosa claimed that this audio proved she was not "trying to set off alarms," as reports suggested at the time.
"I protected myself because this is a White House where everybody lies; the president lies to the American people, [press secretary] Sarah Huckabee stands in front of the country and lies every single day. You have to have your own back or else you'll look back and you'll have 17 knives in your back."
The audio seems to suggest that Omarosa could be in some sort of legal jeopardy. Kelly did not describe what sort of crimes were committed, but he did assert there were "some serious legal issues." What those issues were remain unknown at this time.
Todd also asked Omarosa about the contents of her new book. Omarosa divulged that she had her a tape from "Celebrity Apprentice" in which President Donald Trump used the n-word.
She said she "heard for two years that it existed, and once I heard it for myself, it was confirmed, what I feared the most: That Donald Trump is a con and has been masquerading as someone who is actually open to engaging with diverse communities."
"But when he talks that way, the way he did on this tape, it confirmed that he is truly a racist," she added.
Perhaps the biggest reveal from the interview Sunday was that Omarosa believes Trump's mental capacity is deteriorating.
"They continue to deceive this nation by how mentally declined he is," she said, "how difficult it is for him to process complex information. How he is not engaged in some of the most important decisions that impacts our country. I was complicit, and for that I regret."
How reliable Omarosa is as a truthful narrator is up for debate. The former "Celebrity Apprentice" star does not exactly have a reputation for honesty or integrity. Moreover, Omarosa chose to work for Trump in the White House. She was not coerced or obligated to do so. Omarosa did address this in the interview.
"It is hindsight. But I will say this to you, I was complicit with this White House deceiving this nation," she said.
Regardless of the factual accuracy of her new book, the White House is clearly rattled by Omarosa's new platform. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders went out of her way Friday to call out Omarosa.
"Instead of telling the truth about all the good President Trump and his administration are doing to make America safe and prosperous, this book is riddled with lies and false accusations," Sanders said in a statement
"It’s sad that a disgruntled former White House employee is trying to profit off these false attacks, and even worse that the media would now give her a platform, after not taking her seriously when she had only positive things to say about the President during her time in the administration.”
In a press pool Friday, Trump described Omarosa as a “lowlife. She’s a lowlife.”
Omarosa's faulty standing in the White House is quite evident. Most political commentators are just horrified that she was able to record her time in the West Wing.
If Omarosa taped Kelly in the Situation Room, that is presumably a crime. She should be prosecuted, precisely because if she isn't there will be no deterrent in future.
— John Podhoretz (@jpodhoretz) August 12, 2018
Omarosa needs a lawyer—she made a recording of the White House Chief of Staff in a classified area called a SCIF.
But someone needs to ask John Kelly: Why did you feel the need to have Omarosa’s exit conversation in a SCIF? Is it because said something you didn’t want recorded? https://t.co/75bw2RwbZF— Renato Mariotti (@renato_mariotti) August 12, 2018
I find the Omarosa stuff way more scary than funny.
The White House is one giant national security breach.— andy lassner (@andylassner) August 12, 2018
Omarosa being able to tape in the Situation Room isn't funny.
We understand the absurdity, but we implore people to not make it into a joke.
These kinds of security breaches in the WH can cost troops' lives, and @POTUS is ultimately responsible. This is on Trump.— VoteVets (@votevets) August 12, 2018
Sure, it’s a big joke, we can laugh at it, but the underlying part is kind of not funny: hiring Omarosa and giving her White House insider access showed absolutely execrable judgment.
— WhiteAnxietyHat (@Popehat) August 12, 2018
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