A former contestant on President Trump’s reality show resigned Tuesday and will officially depart the White House on Jan. 20, 2018, White House press secretary Sarah Sanders said Wednesday.
“Omarosa Manigault Newman resigned yesterday to pursue other opportunities,” Sanders said in a statement provided to the Washington Examiner. “Her departure will not be effective until January 20, 2018. We wish her the best in future endeavors and are grateful for her service.”
Manigault Newman is the director of communications for the White House Office of Public Liaison. In that role, she was supposed to serve as the spokeswoman for the West Wing office tasked with conducting outreach to groups and constituencies.
But, Manigault Newman’s tenure was marred by stories about her ill-defined responsibilities and her frequent clashes with fellow White House aides. The former television personality made headlines earlier this year when a White House reporter, April Ryan, claimed a disagreement between herself and Manigault Newman nearly got physical.
Manigault Newman developed a relationship with Trump long before he entered the world of politics thanks to her star-making turn as the villain on the first season of NBC’s “The Apprentice,” which Trump hosted.
Her departure at the one-year mark of Trump’s presidency may become part of what observers expect to be an exodus of White House aides early next year.
Dina Powell, deputy national security adviser, has already announced her impending exit this month.
