Omarosa tells Stephen Colbert Trump's presidency makes her 'excited' and 'very, very concerned'
Stephen Colbert just wanted to hear some comforting words from Omarosa Manigault Newman on Wednesday night, but instead was left feeling as "chilled" as ever.
During her time in the Celebrity Big Brother house, the reality star and former White House aide told her fellow housemate Ross Mathews things aren't going to be okay under President Trump. Colbert said he was "chilled" by her words, and asked her to elaborate. She explained that they were discussing immigration (they weren't, Mathews says), and while "we have an opportunity to make it okay," everyone will just have to "wait and see" what Trump does. "This is not a message of hope," Colbert replied.
It was an awkward interview — Omarosa laughed a lot, Colbert did not — and covered her departure from the White House (it wasn't as dramatic as it sounded, Omarosa said) and what white lies she thinks outgoing White House communications director Hope Hicks made on behalf of Trump (Omarosa thinks it was probably the crowd size at his inauguration). She said many of Trump's comments, like saying there were good people "on both sides" at the white supremacist rally last year in Charlottesville, were "unacceptable" and "awful," which Colbert pushed back on, reminding her that she was part of his administration when he made his remarks. "I don't work for him, nor do I regret trying to be voice of reason at the table," she said.
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Omarosa grew close to Trump during her multiple stints on The Apprentice, and said as his friend, seeing him as president "has caused me to be excited sometimes and very, very concerned. If you woke up and your best friend was president tomorrow, you'd have the same range of emotions." "If my best friend was president tomorrow," Colbert replied, "I'd feel better." Grab some popcorn, and watch the 19-minute interview below. Catherine Garcia
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Catherine Garcia has worked as a senior writer at The Week since 2014. Her writing and reporting have appeared in Entertainment Weekly, The New York Times, Wirecutter, NBC News and "The Book of Jezebel," among others. She's a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
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