Donald Trump Says Hiring Omarosa Manigault Newman Was A Pity Hire: 'The People Hated Her'

Former President Donald Trump is opening up about his thoughts on former cabinet member Omarosa Manigault Newman. 

In 2016, the author joined President Trump's cabinet as an Assistant to the President and Director of the Office of Public Liaison. Her tenure, however, was short-lived. She was fired in December 2017 less than one year after she started.

According to the 'Atlanta Black Star,' Trump described his former colleague's short-lived stint in the White House was not a time enjoyed by others.

He claimed, "The people hated her in Washington," in 'Variety's' co-editor-in-chief Ramin Setoodeh's new book 'Apprentice in Wonderland: How Donald Trump and Mark Burnett Took America Through the Looking Glass.'  

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He alleged that many of the complaints were professional, saying, "She was late all the time. She wouldn't show up." 

When discussing why he originally brought her into the cabinet, Trump, 78, shared, "I helped her get a job at the White House because she was begging me to help restore her. So I figured, 'Why not?' I put her in." 

"When we fire her, we'll have nothing but trouble," he continued. "But that's okay. That's the way life goes. A lot of things I do in life I do as an experiment."

Omarosa's departure from the White House marked the beginning of a new phase in their conflict. In 2018, she released a tell-all book titled "Unhinged: An Insider's Account of the Trump White House."

Her book painted a damning picture of the Trump administration and included several explosive allegations against the former president. 

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Trump attested that her betrayal was something that was born out of a money-grab attempt after being fired. He alleged that Omarosa "was actually really great to me, until she left. And then after she left, she got a book deal, and she made some money. They could all do that. But they are scumbags when they do."

Omarosa Manigault Newman first gained fame as a contestant on Trump's NBC reality show 'The Apprentice.' She appeared on the series' debut season in 2004, and again on 'The Celebrity Apprentice' in 2008. Her assertive and often controversial presence on the show made her a memorable figure, becoming known as the "woman America loved to hate," according to now-defunct 'Jet.'