Former aide tells of Trump’s mental decline

A former aide to Donald Trump said yesterday that she secretly recorded her sacking by John Kelly, the chief of staff, in the high-security White House situation room.

Omarosa Manigault Newman also claimed Americans were being kept in the dark about Trump’s mental decline, saying: ‘‘I was complicit with the White House deceiving this nation.’’

Newman, whose tell-all book about her White House tenure is released tomorrow, left the administration in December and says she was threatened by Kelly who told her things could get ‘‘ugly’’ if she did not go on friendly terms.

She also described the president as a racist – an accusation he has repeatedly denied – on the day white nationalists and counter-protesters were due to gather in Washington to stage rallies on the anniversary of the Charlottesville far-Right march, which left a woman dead.

Newman made the disclosures on US television hours after the president responded to a question about her book Unhinged: An Insider’s Account of the Trump White House by saying: ‘‘Lowlife. She’s a low life.’’ The former star of The Apprentice told NBC’s Meet the Press that she regretted her White House role.

She said: ‘‘It is hindsight. But I will say this to you, I was complicit with the White House deceiving this nation.

‘‘They continue to deceive this nation by how mentally declined he is, how difficult it is for him to process complex information, how he is not engaged in some of the most important decisions that impact our country. I was complicit, and for that I regret.’’

The 44-year-old then raised security concerns by revealing that she had been able to smuggle her mobile phone into the situation room, where top secrets and strategies are discussed.

Newman justified her action by saying that she felt the need to protect herself.

‘‘I protected myself because this is a White House where everybody lies; the president lies to the American people, [press secretary] Sarah Huckabee stands in front of the country and lies every single day.’’

There was swift reaction from the president’s camp to her remarks.

Newman effectively threw a hand grenade by claiming without evidence that she had heard a tape of Trump using racist language against African Americans.

She said: ‘‘It was confirmed what I feared the most: that Donald Trump is a con and has been masquerading as someone who is actually open to engaging with diverse communities, but when he talks that way, the way he did on his tape, it confirmed that he is truly a racist.’’ - Telegraph Group

‘‘. . . this is a White House where everybody lies; the president lies to the American people, Sarah Huckabee stands in front of the country and lies every single day.’’ Omarosa Manigault Newman, former aide to President Donald Trump