Omarosa Manigault Newman pushed back Thursday on reports she was fired and dragged off the White House grounds, accusing reporter April Ryan of having a "vendetta" against her and insisting she resigned effective Jan. 20.
The soon-to-be former White House aide also teased telling a "profound" story about racial matters she was troubled by during her time in the Trump administration.
"I resigned, and I didn't do that in the residence as being reported," Omarosa said in an interview on "Good Morning America." "John Kelly and I sat down in the Situation Room, which is a very secure, very quiet room in the White House, and we had a very candid conversation, and I wanted to make the one-year mark that was one of the goals that i set out to and then get back to my life."
White House correspondent April Ryan reported Wednesday that the former "Apprentice" contestant did not resign, but that she was fired by Chief of Staff John Kelly and exploded into vulgarities upon hearing the news. Ryan said the fight began at one of the two Christmas parties at the White House on Tuesday night, The Hill reports:
According to Ryan, "everything blew up" when Kelly tried to discuss Newman's walk-in privileges and access to Trump.
Ryan reported Newman saying that "all hell will break loose" should she lose walk-in access to Trump.
The Secret Service's official Twitter account denied its role in Ryan's story, saying its only involvement was to deactivate her pass giving her White House access.
Omarosa said the story was "100 percent false," adding she said there would have been "pictures or videos" of any public confrontation with Kelly.
"The assertion that I would do that in front of 600 guests at a Christmas party, and no one has reported that except for one individual who has a personal vendetta against me, and so I have to tell you completely false, unverified reporting, and John Kelly and I had a very straightforward discussion about concerns that I had, issues that I've raised," she said.
Omarosa, without naming Ryan, said she had attacked her for the last year and said it was "personal."
She also denied reports she sought to enter the residence and set off alarms, saying the Secret Service backed her claims and should be believed over Ryan. New York Times reporter Yamiche Alcindor on "Morning Joe" Thursday reported that as well, although she added Omarosa was furious over losing her walk-in privileges with the president.
Ryan appeared on a raucous panel on CNN Thursday, where panelist Angela Rye screamed with joy over the news of Omarosa's departure and said she had done nothing for the African American community. Ryan said she did not take pleasure in anyone's "demise."
Omarosa vaguely referred to things she observed in the White House that she was troubled by that had affected "her people," and she said she looked forward to telling her "profound" story about her experiences.
Alcindor reported Omarosa was not respected by her colleagues, and her role in the administration appeared loosely defined. She also took criticism for bringing her 39-person wedding party to the White House for a photo shoot last spring.