Omarosa Manigault Newman’s new book, “Unhinged,” must not be making the splash she expected it would.
The 44-year-old former reality star-turned-White-House-aide (shown above right) became downright rude during an interview Monday morning on NBC’s “Today” show, as host Savannah Guthrie (above left) grilled her about her time in the administration of President Donald Trump, her firing — and just how exactly she taped Gen. John Kelly, the chief of staff, in the White House Situation Room.
At times condescending, at times defensive, Manigault Newman seemed intent on getting viewers to focus on the question of, as she put it provocatively, eyes narrowed, “Just who is running the country.”
(She contends it is Gen. Kelly, not the president.)
Omarosa also said at one point that Guthrie was asking questions too quickly.
Guthrie asked her, “Do you think the president lies often?” to which the guest replied, “Oh, absolutely, in fact—”
Before Manigault Newman could respond, Guthrie asked, “How long have you known that?”
Omarosa began to answer, “There was a report that said that he [told] almost 4,000 lies in the last… ”
But Guthrie pressed again, “Have you known that he is a liar, as you say?”
Manigault Newman answered, “Well, absolutely.”
Asked Guthrie, “Why did you work for him?”
Manigault Newman eyes flashed at this point and she became condescending.
“Savannah, slow down. I’m gonna answer your question. Don’t worry, I’m here,” she said. “I’ve got all the time you need. You don’t have to ask 10 questions in one second. It’s OK.”
And then she slipped in this additional bit of condescension: “Calm down.”
After Guthrie expressed the hope that Manigault Newman would indeed stay on to answer more questions — the author, at the top of the interview, had indicated they had plenty of time to cover everything — Manigault Newman apparently had a change of heart.
When Guthrie brought up the topic of mental health, her guest dismissed her with a wave of the hand, saying, “You know we have an interview after this … but I will answer the last question — and you see that the time is running out,” she said, pointing in front of her, ostensibly at a clock or timer.
Related: Omarosa Broke White House Security Protocol in Taping Situation Room Firing
“What time do you have to go?” Guthrie asked her.
“You know that it’s a seven-minute interview,” Manigault Newman scolded. “Now we’re at 10 [minutes].”
Repeatedly, the disgraced former aide tried to hammer home her theme that in her mind, Trump is incompetent and untruthful.
“First of all, he is known to be an entertainer, to exaggerate,” she said. “I never expected him to lie to the country. I thought that he would take his oath of office seriously, that he would be committed to advancing this country. But instead, as I stated, there was a report that said he has said something like 4,000 lies since he’s taken office. So he absolutely has an issue with the truth, and sometimes he battles with reality.”
Watch the cringeworthy segment below:
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