‘He will regret it fast’
‘LOCKED AND LOADED, ’ TRUMP THREATENS KIM
WELCOME to reality.
A panel at the 2017 National Association of Black Journalists conference in New Orleans descended into chaos on Friday as Trump administration staffer and “Apprentice” contestant Omarosa Manigault-Newman was met with laughter, boos and turned backs.
And that was from the people who didn’t simply walk out.
Manigault-Newman raised the ire of many in the room as she refused to answer questions about President Trump and his stances on issues related to the AfricanAmerican community and police brutality. Asked about Trump’s recent comments suggesting police officers should be rougher with suspects, Manigault-Newman said she would not “disclose confidential conversations” with Trump.
Several people stood with their backs turned to her as she spoke, while others left the room. Several of her comments, and her refusals to discuss the President, drew loud guffaws.
Manigault-Newman at one point accused moderator Ed Gordon, a journalist and producer, of being “aggressive.” The pair both stood and paced the stage.
“Let me tell my story,” Manigault-Newman (photo) said. “Ask me a question about me.”
Gordon maintained it was appropriate to ask questions about her work in the White House, though he later said the event was reaching “the point of diminished returns.” Manigault-Newman, 43, once a contestant on Trump’s reality TV show “The Apprentice,” is the communications director for the Office of Public Liaison for the White House. She’s generally referred to by just her first name. Prior to arriving in New Orleans, Manigault-Newman butted heads with media. “I am here @NABJ to talk about my father and brother’s murders. Do you have any decency? ” she told MSNBC host Joy-Ann Reid on Twitter Friday.
During the heated sitdown, Manigault-Newman did say some Trump comments were inappropriate, according to The Washington Post.But then she decided she’d had enough of the tense exchanges.
She ended up walking off the stage before the end of the panel, according to Buzzfeed.
“I’ll see y’all at the White House Christmas party in December,” Gordon reportedly said as Manigault-Newman left.
The uproar at what was billed as a serious panel discussion about police reform — featuring relatives of several black men killed by cops — was condemned by several journalists.“This omarosa appearance is beneath NABJ,” The Washington Post’s Wesley Lowery tweeted.