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U.S. Sues Omarosa Manigault-Newman for Ethics Violations

Omarosa Manigault-Newman Sued by U.S. for Ethics Violations

(Bloomberg) -- Omarosa Manigault-Newman, who rose from contestant on Donald Trump’s reality TV show to loyal aide to the president, was sued by the U.S. for failing to file a financial disclosure report, in violation of the Ethics in Government Act.

The civil lawsuit, filed in Washington federal court, seeks an court order compelling her to file the report and pay a fine of as much as $50,000. It’s the latest twist in a head-spinning relationship that began with Manigault-Newman’s featured appearance in "The Apprentice" and ended with a 2018 book about the president she called "Unhinged."

Manigault-Newman’s lawyer, John Phillips, said the lawsuit was “premature, retaliatory and an attempt to silence a dissenting voice.” After leaving the administration, where she was an assistant to the president, Manigault-Newman wrote a tell-all book that questioned Trump’s stability, and she released several conversations she surreptitiously taped at the White House.

Trump has attacked Manigault-Newman repeatedly. "When you give a crazed, crying lowlife a break, and give her a job at the White House, I guess it just didn’t work out,” he said in a Twitter posting. He also claimed she violated a non-disclosure agreement by writing the tome.

Manigault-Newman’s White House employment ended on Dec. 19, 2017, and she was notified by the counsel’s office that she had to file an exit disclosure statement by Jan. 18, 2018, according to the complaint. Despite repeated requests since then, she has still not filed, the U.S. claims.

Phillips said Manigault-Newman has made repeated requests for documents of hers withheld by the White House and which she needs to file.

"It wasn’t until May 10, 2019, that they agreed to provide documents or even acknowledged their existence," the attorney said. "We requested an extension until her documents could be returned."

The case is U.S. v. Manigault-Newman, 19-cv-1868, U.S. District Court, District of Columbia (Washington).

To contact the reporter on this story: Andrew Harris in Washington at aharris16@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: David Glovin at dglovin@bloomberg.net

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