Omarosa Manigault Newman
Omarosa Onee Newman, known mononymously as Omarosa, is an American reality television star, lawyer, author, former political consultant and White House aide. She held White House staff roles during the presidential terms of Bill Clinton and Donald Trump. She rose to prominence as a contestant on the first season of NBC's The Apprentice and has remained in the public eye largely through recurring roles on reality television, with additional visibility from television interviews and appearances on political programs.
Newman became assistant to the President and director of communications for the Office of Public Liaison during the Trump administration in January 2017. However, on December 13, 2017, White House Chief of Staff John Kelly fired Newman, citing "money and integrity issues", as well as "inappropriate use of company vehicles". Afterwards, she competed twice on the Big Brother reality seriesin 2018 on the first season of Celebrity Big Brother US, placing 5th, and in 2021 on Big Brother Australia VIP, placing 12th.
In August 2018, Newman published Unhinged, detailing her tenure at the White House and criticizing Trump and his administration. Two days before the book was released, she released the first of as many as 200 secret tapes she recorded during her White House tenure. As of May 23, 2022, she had released four tapes. The first tape released, which was secretly recorded inside the Situation Room, was described as "one of the worst White House security breaches ever," though the tape is thought not to violate the Espionage Act.
On March 15, 2020, Newman was forced to pay $61,585 to the US Treasury for her violation of the Ethics in Government Act, in what the judge described as "willful violation" after receiving "countless reminders" to submit her final financial disclosure after being fired from her position in the White House.
Early life and career
Newman was born in Youngstown, Ohio, the daughter of Theresa Marie Walker and Jack Thomas Manigault. Newman's father died when she was seven years old. After graduating from The Rayen School in Youngstown, she earned a bachelor's degree in communications with a concentration in radio in 1996 at Central State University in Wilberforce, Ohio. She later moved to Washington, D.C., to attend Howard University, where she earned a master's degree and worked toward a doctorate in communications, but did not finish. She temporarily served as a facilitator and presenter at Howard University. Newman has also received biblical studies training at Payne Theological Seminary in Wilberforce, Ohio.In the 1990s, Newman worked in the office of Vice President Al Gore during the Clinton administration. She later said the job had been "a very difficult environment, because they don't believe in training. They just kind of throw you in the fire." Gore's former office administrator, Mary Margaret Overbey, said in 2017 that Newman "was the worst hire we ever made." In her resume, Newman later described her job duties as a "senior scheduling and advance coordinator" in charge of Gore's schedule, though former Gore staffers told The New York Times that she was only in charge of responding to invitations. She was later transferred to Clinton's Commerce Department via the White House personnel office. Cheryl Shavers, who then served as the Commerce Department's Undersecretary for Technology Administration, said that Newman was "unqualified and disruptive," adding, "I had her removed."
Reality television career
First and seventh seasons of ''The Apprentice'' and ''The Ultimate Merger''
Newman first came to public attention in 2004 after becoming a participant on the first season of NBC's reality television series The Apprentice. Stemming from her confrontational persona on The Apprentice, Newman soon became the "woman America loved to hate" and was named by E! as "reality TV's number one bad girl". Newman has disagreed with the "villain" label, rather believing herself to be "a shrewd businesswoman", asserting that when a man behaves assertively, he is seen as strong, but when a woman does so, she is portrayed negatively. Newman has also claimed the show's producers manipulated footage of her to make her look like the villain. She was "fired" in week 9.In January 2008, Newman participated in the first season of The Apprentice sequel show, Celebrity Apprentice; she became the only former Apprentice participant to be invited back to the series. On Celebrity Apprentice, she quickly became embroiled in a personal feud with fellow contestant Piers Morgan. She was eventually fired in the 10th episode, after serving as the project manager of the team that, according to Trump, suffered "the biggest slaughter in the history of The Apprentice" in a challenge to sell artwork against a team led by Morgan. She raised $49,000 in total for her charity.
In June 2010, Newman and Trump collaborated to create a dating show called The Ultimate Merger, with 12 men competing for her affections. The show aired on TV One.
Thirteenth season of ''The Apprentice''
In February 2013, Newman returned to television and The Apprentice, appearing on Trump's All-Star Celebrity Apprentice. She quickly marshalled her team to an early victory on the show, winning a task involving the creation of a photo booth at Universal Orlando. In a later episode, Lil Jon's team was brought back to the boardroom after they lost. Piers Morgan remarked, "my argument against you has always been that you're not a celebrity... and you don't have star power," which led to a heated argument that resulted in Trump firing Newman. On Late Night with Jimmy Fallon, when asked by Jimmy Fallon whether or not she felt the show set her up by having Piers Morgan act as one of the judges, Newman answered, "I felt like I was competing against Piers, as well as the other contestants." Newman also noted that when she sees Morgan's show canceled in a year, it will be "the best revenge".Omarosa filed a lawsuit against Latoya Jackson following the finale of The Apprentice 2013.
Controversy
On The Oprah Winfrey Show in 2004, Newman accused fellow Apprentice participant Ereka Vetrini of calling her the "n-word", a claim Vetrini has denied. Shortly after that appearance, Newman didn't attend a scheduled appearance on the Jimmy Kimmel Live! show after she reportedly objected upon seeing a polygraph machine.Following her stint on Celebrity Apprentice: All Stars, Newman lashed out at La Toya Jackson over Jackson's remarks that insinuated that Newman had murdered her fiancé, Michael Clarke Duncan. Jackson made the remarks in Celebrity Apprentice confessionals and in following media interviews.
When asked about the probability of suing La Toya Jackson, Newman said:
''Celebrity Big Brother''
Newman appeared on the first season of Celebrity Big Brother, a spin-off of the Big Brother series. The show aired on the CBS network, February 7 to 25, 2018. Newman remained in the game throughout that time, surviving elimination and winning multiple competitions right up until the finale, where she was one of the last five contestants standing. At one point, host Julie Chen Moonves speculated that Newman could win the entire season. Throughout the season, she expressed her objections to working with Donald Trump and his administration as well as claims about her White House experience. Many of these political revelations garnered significant media attention and headline news. Newman placed fifth being evicted in a 2–0 house vote.''Big Brother VIP''
In 2021, Newman competed on Big Brother VIP, the celebrity edition of Australian Big Brother. Newman was nominated for the first eviction by Caitlyn Jenner, and subsequently evicted in a 5–3–2 house vote.Trump presidential campaign and administration
In a 2015 Washington Post article, Omarosa identified as a "die-hard" Hillary supporter. She has been a registered Democrat for over a decade. However her personal relationship with the Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump prevailed and during the Republican National Convention in July 2016, it was announced she had been named director of African-American outreach for Donald Trump's presidential campaign. In September 2016, she said in an interview with Frontline: "Every critic, every detractor, will have to bow down to President Trump. It's everyone who's ever doubted Donald, whoever disagreed, whoever challenged him. It is the ultimate revenge to become the most powerful man in the universe." Shortly after Trump won the election, Newman stated that Trump has an "enemies" list of Republicans who voted against him.In December 2016, Newman was announced as one of nine additional members to Trump's presidential transition team. Unlike the rest of President Trump's inner circle appointments, Omarosa didn't have any roots in the Republican party or otherwise conservative or right wing activism. In December 2016, she accompanied former NFL stars Ray Lewis and Jim Brown to meet with Trump at Trump Tower.
On January 3, 2017, it was reported that Newman would join Trump's White House staff, focusing on public engagement. Her specific title was made public the next day as assistant to the President and director of communications for the Office of Public Liaison. In her first interview after being named to the Trump White House, Newman told Megyn Kelly that she was a "Trumplican" and had switched her political affiliation to the Republican Party. Newman said she hoped more African Americans would follow her lead and do the same, and accused Democrats of taking African-American voters for granted and making empty promises to them.
In June 2017, Newman invited the Congressional Black Caucus to visit the White House, signing the invitation as "the Honorable Omarosa Manigault". Some members of the CBC took exception to her use of the title, which is neither customary for political aides nor typically self-applied. The CBC ultimately declined the invitation. In August 2017, Newman was on a panel about losing loved ones to violence at the National Association of Black Journalists convention in New Orleans, Louisiana. She became involved in a shouting match with moderator and fellow panelist Ed Gordon because his questions to her focused on Trump's policies and not her personal history with losing family members to violence.