Omarosa 'Physically Intimidated' Reporter, Said Administration Keeps Dossiers on Black Journalists

By Prachi Gupta  |  February 14, 2017 | 3:35pm
Politics

Another day, another half a dozen stories of extreme dysfunction within the Trump Administration. Omarosa Manigault, the former Apprentice and Celebrity Apprentice reality TV star who now heads communications at the Trump White House (the most terrifying reality TV show experiment of all time), “physically intimidated” a journalist outside the Oval Office last week according to the Washington Post.

American Urban Radio Networks reporter April Ryan told the Post that Manigault harassed her outside White House press secretary Sean Spicer’s West Wing office last Wednesday. “She stood right in my face like she was going to hit me,” Ryan said. “I said, ‘You better back up.’ . . . She thought I would be bullied. I won’t be.”

“She’s trying to harm my integrity and my career,” she continued. “I’ve been [covering the White House] for 20 years. I plan to be here for the next 20 years. You don’t mess with someone’s livelihood.”

Washington Post reporter Abby Philips witnessed the incident and called it “Secret Serviceable,” meaning that the aggressive act warranted Secret Service intervention.

Manigault also apparently verbally threatened Ryan, claiming that she was one of several black journalists the White House monitors with “dossiers” of negative information.

When reached by the Post via email, Manigault responded with about the level of maturity and thoughtfulness one would expect from a White House official accused of threatening a reporter: “My comment: Fake news!”

 
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