Omarosa Manigault Slams Report That She Was Fired

by C. Gregg

Omarosa Manigault Newman, wife of Jacksonville Pastor John Newman,  shut down reports that she was fired from the Trump administration on Thursday morning, telling Michael Strahan that claims of her dramatic White House exit are “100 percent false.”

“I resigned and I didn’t do that in the residence as being reported,” the former “Apprentice” star said to Strahan during an appearance on ABC’s “Good Morning America.” “John Kelly and I sat down in the Situation Room, which is a very secure, very quiet room in the White House, and we had a very candid conversation.”

The White House issued a statement on Wednesday noting that Manigault Newman would be leaving the administration next month, and that her resignation will be effective Jan. 20. Manigault Newman says it was her goal to stay a year with what she called an “interesting” Trump administration — but reports, specifically from American Urban Radio Networks’ April Ryan, quickly surfaced that she was fired and escorted off White House grounds.

Manigault Newman talked specifically about the shift in internal leadership that occurred when John Kelly replaced Reince Priebus as White House chief of staff, suggesting he may have found issue with her role in the administration.

“I stand out. I’m the only African American woman who sits at the table with those 30 assistants to the president, and we all had to adjust to his very different militaristic style,” Manigault Newman said. “Every captain, every coach gets an opportunity to choose their team. Donald Trump chose me for his team. And I’m not certain that as John Kelly was developing his team that I was someone he wanted on his team.”

“I can’t expand upon it, because I have to still go back and work with these individuals. When I have a choice to tell my story, Michael, quite a story to tell.” Manigault Newman said. “As the only African American woman in this White House, as a senior staff, an assistant to the president, I have seen things that have made me uncomfortable, that have upset me, that have affected me deeply and emotionally, that have affected my community and my people. When I can tell my story, it is a profound story that I know the world will want to hear.”