The Lara Trump And Omarosa Manigault Newman Scandal, Explained

When the then-White House press secretary, Sarah Huckabee Sanders, announced that Omarosa Manigault Newman had resigned to seek growth elsewhere, many Americans didn't buy it. Sanders' December 13, 2017, press release confirmed that Manigault Newman's "departure [would] not be effective until Jan. 20, 2018," and wished her well, but reports that she had been fired immediately circulated. The controversial media personality was appointed to lead Donald Trump's Office of Public Liaison just 11 months earlier and was one of his most vocal and combative supporters — remember when she infamously proclaimed that Trump's haters would eventually "bow down" to him?

An article in The New York Times later reported that Manigault Newman was gearing up to share the real reason she had quit. As she teased during an appearance on "Good Morning America," "I have seen things that have made me uncomfortable, that have upset me, that have affected me deeply and emotionally, that have affected my community and my people." The outspoken star added, "It is a profound story that I know the world will want to hear." The big reveal came eight months later, in August 2018, when Manigault Newman began conducting a series of interviews to promote her new book, "Unhinged," which promised a no-holds-barred account of her White House experiences. 

Between August 12 and 14, the day her book launched, she released several secretly recorded conversations to back up her wildest claims. They included conversations with John Kelly, Trump himself, and other high-ranking presidential employees. "Unhinged" accused the then-president of being evil, racist, and, as per the title itself, unhinged (even though she'd previously denied that he was racist on "Nightline"). Then, on August 16, Manigulat Newman took aim at Lara Trump by accusing her of offering her hush money. To support this allegation she, of course, had receipts.

Two days after her book launch, Omarosa Manigault Newman appeared on MSNBC with an exclusive tape of a conversation that she claimed had occurred between herself and Lara Trump. In the recording, Lara refers to The New York Times article, noting, "It sounds a little like, obviously, there are some things you've got in the back pocket to pull out. Clearly, if you come on board with the campaign, we can't have it," (via YouTube).

Lara then floated a potential salary for Manigault Newman to participate in Donald Trump's 2020 presidential re-election campaign, doing "speaking engagements," and asked if $15,000 a month sounded fair to her. The former Trump staffer asserted that she saw it as an attempt to keep her quiet. That same day, Lara responded in a statement, clarifying: "Another one of Omarosa's 'bombshell' tapes is a fraud," (via X, formerly known as Twitter). Donald Trump's daughter-in-law also described it as a personal "betrayal" but notably didn't deny that she was the one on the tape. 

"We still wanted her on our team because we cared about her personally. That's why I reached out to her to offer her a position with the 2020 Trump campaign," Lara maintained, adding, "I hope it's all worth it for you, Omarosa, because some things you just can't put a price on." Understandably, "Unhinged" and the surrounding promotional interviews marked the beginning of Omarosa's tense relationship with Donald Trump.

Donald Trump and his army of vociferous supporters fueled the media frenzy by firing back at Omarosa Manigault Newman's digs. In fact, when "Unhinged" debuted, the then-president personally responded to her allegations in a scathing X post. Donald called her a "crazed, crying lowlife" and reiterated that Manigault Newman hadn't resigned, but was fired (considering that one of Manigault Newman's tapes was of her being fired by John Kelly, this is apt, and Sarah Huckabee Sanders' press release was apparently inaccurate). 

Hours after her MSNBC interview aired, the GOP shared a video compilation of various times that Manigault Newman had extensively praised and defended her former boss on X. Standing next to Lara Trump, no less, in one of the clips, she enthusiastically rallied a crowd: "When I say, 'Trump train,' I want you to say 'choo choo'." Still, Manigault Newman publicly aimed at her former friend again in 2020. The Daily Mail published audio recordings of the ex-White House employee's appearance on Donald's former lawyer, Michael Cohen's, podcast, "Mea Culpa." 

She spoke openly about the controversial moment with Lara that occurred back in 2018 and argued that Eric Trump's wife hadn't said anything further because she was well aware of just how much Manigault Newman already knew. "I have [tapes of] Lara badmouthing Ivanka. I have Lara badmouthing Donald. I have Lara badmouthing Melania," the bestselling author bragged. This time around, however, and to date, there has been no public response from Lara.