White House press secretary Sarah Sanders skewered fired Trump administration aide Omarosa Manigault Newman after the former reality TV star on Sunday released a tape she recorded of White House chief of staff John Kelly dismissing her in the Situation Room.
“The very idea a staff member would sneak a recording device into the White House Situation Room, shows a blatant disregard for our national security — and then to brag about it on national television further proves the lack of character and integrity of this disgruntled former White House employee,” Sanders said in a statement shared by the White House press pool.
[Opinion: The media never trusted Omarosa – until she had dirt on Trump]
The official statement followed Manigault Newman’s interview Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” which aired the tape the former star of “The Apprentice” surreptitiously made. The tape has raised concerns that Manigault Newman breached national security protocol by taking a recording device into what is supposed to be one of the most secure parts of the presidential complex.
The White House is fighting to pin Manigault Newman as “disgruntled” ahead of the release of her forthcoming memoir, “Unhinged,” which she has been promoting before its August 14 publication date.
“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. It’s sad that a disgruntled former White House employee is trying to profit off these false attacks,” Sanders said in a Friday statement.
Trump himself on Saturday described Manigault-Newman as a “lowlife” to reporters.
Manigault Newman, then the director of communications for the White House’s Office of Public Liaison, was fired by Kelly in December for reportedly using the administration’s car service to get to and from work.
