*By Jacqueline Corba and Carlo Versano* Former Trump aide Omarosa Manigault Newman told Cheddar Monday that she "started to see things that concerned me and alarmed me" in the Trump White House. That's why she surreptitiously recorded an untold number of conversations she both had and overheard. She wouldn't comment on how she taped the president, citing ongoing arbitration with Trump campaign lawyers. But the most recently released recording, [which she played Monday morning](https://twitter.com/TheView/status/1039184332919730176) on ABC's "The View", consisted mostly of a discussion between Trump and Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders which involved Hillary Clinton and the so-called Steele dossier. In the audio file, which was supposedly recorded in October 2017, Trump claims Clinton's campaign paid $9 million for a "phony report" that detailed collusion between his campaign and Russia. According to Manigault Newman, Trump vastly underestimates "the depth and the breadth" of the special counsel Robert Mueller's investigation on Russia and wishes she "rang the alarm" on the president's misconduct earlier. "If you discover that your friend is an arsonist, you gotta stop giving them matches," she said. "Unfortunately, I was a co-conspirator in doing that, and I don't want to be a part of that anymore." Manigault Newman gained some notoriety as a contestant on the inaugural season of "The Apprentice" and parlayed her 15 minutes into a reality-show career before joining the Trump administration as a director of communications for the Office of Public Liaison. She was fired from her post last December after about a year on the job. Lately, she's been on a weeks-long publicity tour for a new book, "Unhinged," in which she calls the president unfit to lead. Manigault Newman said she originally supported Trump, though she became concerned almost immediately after the president took office. "It went straight to his head," she said. "Power is the most addictive drug in the world." The former aide also said she believes she knows the anonymous author of last week's explosive [New York Times op-ed] (https://www.nytimes.com/2018/09/05/opinion/trump-white-house-anonymous-resistance.html), which also dubbed Trump unfit. By looking at old correspondence and noticing style, tone, and word similarities, Manigault Newman said she thought the essay was penned by Nick Ayers, Vice President Pence's chief of staff. Pence has adamantly [denied](https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/pence-confident-no-one-on-his-staff-wrote-nyt-column/2018/09/10/b2d4ca90-b4b0-11e8-ae4f-2c1439c96d79_story.html?utm_term=.9531e8b547e0) having anything to do with the editorial, telling CBS on Sunday that he was "100 percent confident" no one on his staff wrote it. "Unhinged: An Insider's Account of the Trump White House" is available now. For full interview [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/what-its-like-to-work-inside-the-trump-white-house).

Share:
More In Politics
Breaking Down Putin Phone Call With President Biden Over Ukraine
Matt Hayden, vice president of govtech solutions at Exiger and a former assistant secretary of cyber at Department of Homeland Security, joined Cheddar to discuss the surprise phone call initiated by Russian President Vladimir Putin to President Joe Biden, ahead of January security talks about the rising tensions over Ukraine. "We're hoping to hear that we're able to talk about the aggression and the leadup of the Ukrainian militarization," Hayden said. "But we're also looking to hear is how the Kremlin leveraged their talking points to try to test their negotiation stance with the United States leading into this January 10th meeting."
Law Preventing Surprise Out-of-Network Health Bills Gets Underway January 1
The No Surprises Act begins implementation on January 1, 2022. The legislation is meant to curb the practice of unexpected billing for care from providers the patient was unaware were out-of-network from their insurance. Patricia Kelmar, director of health care campaigns for U.S. PIRG joined Cheddar to describe the hundreds, sometimes thousands, of dollars charged to unsuspecting patients and how things will change under the new law. "If we are picking an in-network doctor and an in-network hospital, we should not see those added costs from anesthesiologists, radiologists, scrub-in surgeons," she said. "The other area it protects you is in air ambulances — not ground ambulances, unfortunately — but the helicopters or the airplanes you might need to transport you in an emergency situation."
Biden, Putin to Hold Conversation on Rising Tension Between Russia, Ukraine
President Joe Biden and Russian President Vladmir Putin are expected to have another conversation surrounding escalating tensions between Russia and Ukraine. Ariel Cohen, senior fellow at the Atlantic Council, joined Cheddar's Ken Buffa to discuss the ongoing tensions and why Putin's request for a conversation with Biden comes now. "This is very serious. This is the worst security crisis we had since the collapse of the Soviet Union," Cohen told Cheddar.
Dow, S&P Hit Record Close Amid 'Santa Claus Rally'
Stocks closed mixed on Wednesday, but two indexes - the Dow and the S&P 500 - ended the session with a new record. Akshata Bailkeri, Equity Analyst at Bruderman Asset Management, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where she says there is a consensus for robust consumer spreading in 2022, especially as the Omicron variant is proving to be milder than other COVID-19 strains.
Walmart Draws Ire of Chinese Consumers Over Xinjiang Products
John Quelch, Dean of Miami Herbert Business School, joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell, where he says the retail giant is acting in accordance to President Biden's new law banning goods from China's Xinjiang region. Quelch also elaborates on the importance of China in Walmart's overall strategy.
Load More