senator jerry moran's town hall and an interview with erik prin ce. omarosa manigault's communications director for the white house. we talked about her role in the trump administration and her time in the clinton white house. this is half an hour. , let mesa manigault begin with your name. what is the etymology? omarosa: my name is omarosa manigault, it means my beautiful child desired. my father named me. in ohio.ew up one of four. omarosa: the youngest. two girls. my father was killed when i was seven. up until seven, i was in a two parent home and of course that

was shattered because of senseless violence. manather was killed by a who committed the most horrible act you could, in terms of taking a father from his four children and wife. very difficult time for my family. host: what do you remember about him? omarosa: he was funny. he had a certain swagger. he could be very intensely serious and focused. host: and your mother? very gracious, kind, the life of the party. she has a light about her. and a very devout christian. she was on advocate for education. she was actually going to school, university, for early

childhood education to be a teacher when my father died. host: let me ask about a couple of your titles -- omarosa: titles. i'm an ordained baptist minister. i was a pastore. ima military chaplain. i'm a professor. until januarysor 20. the most important thing is a christian, because christ is the head of my life. host: how do you train for that? what is the schooling involved? being a pastor, minister, which one of the titles? host: pick any one of them. omarosa: so, you have to go to seminary. i went to two. i started at united theological seminary. i transferred to another one for

their doctorate of ministry program and then i was licensed at a baptist church, where i was ordained. host: so what is the secret for a successful sermon? how do you prepare for that? omarosa: it's important that you pray and you meditate and listen to what god is trying to say to you and what message he wants you to convey. you have to remove yourself from the process. you are sharing the word. my process starts with prayer. and then you have to be driven by the word. taughtmy professors exegetermons and how to the text so you do not yourself into it. host: what does your faith mean to you? omarosa: my faith is my

foundation, my compass, it guides everything i do in my life, through good times and bad times. it is centered on the word of us tod what god has asked do, being obedient to his instruction that is outlined in the word. host: through the loss of your father, another tragedy, how do you go through those moments? omarosa: i would be nothing without god, i mean, i don't know many people who could survive the type of tragedies i have survived and the conditions i grew up in. the loss. the difficulties. and still have a sense of themselves and still have their mind. i've only been able to do that because of my faith in christ and belief in his word and what he said, which is that he knows

the plans for me, to prosper and not to harm me. even as i go through these storms, i recognize i have to have joy, no matter what i'm going through. that comes from my faith. host: what was your most difficult storm? omarosa: my gosh, there were seven many storms and a major storm. it was like a storm that spurs six or seven tornadoes. there were so many chapters in my life. losing my sister. we were a year apart. losing my fiance, who had a heart attack and before that, my brother was shot and killed in the same town my father was murdered in. even though it has been a difficult season, i have found

i'm equipped for everything life throws my way. god has prepared me and i've learned to work through the difficult times and to don to what i know, that joy comes in the morning. host: let me ask about another title, public liaison in the office of communication. what does that mean? as a communications director, it is important we are communicating the vision the president has for the community that we serve, for the constituents we serve. and that that message is clear and thorough and that is what my job is. host: part of that involves bringing in black college presidents. you went to howard university. omarosa: i started in ohio, where i played volleyball.

radio. part of black i started at central state and a went to howard for my masters and doctoral. host: what position in volleyball? omarosa: i was a setter. [laughter] i can't imagine, even though i am tall, i have incredible jumping ability, the setter really sets the pace of the game and the strategy for how to win. that is why i love to that position. to theet me go back college presidents meeting with some graffiti was written. one of them, welcome to the trump plantation, the overseer. what was your reaction? omarosa: i was a rambunctious student. protest, i was

part of the agitations that brought about the change we wanted. i think those protests the students are meeting is important. it is the only way to affect change. i was not surprised. i know the students well. i'm a graduate and i taught there, served on the advisory programs.mba if students are unhappy with the leadership, you will hear from them in a form of protest. in this case, they used graffiti. other times they will march. walkouts. of howarde culture university. we only raise leaders. we do not raise followers. host: what is your message to the african-american community? omarosa: in what regard? the african-american community is not a monolith. we have to be careful of saying

there is a single message for african-americans. tell me specifically. host: in terms of outreach. when you are meeting with students, college leaders, business leaders, people who want to find out what the president means to them, race issues, jobs. omarosa: my job is to communicate the vision of the president. he would like to see for those who have been promised things from the previous administration, who were sold hope and change and were unemployed after four years, they'd could not fill their gas tanks. see theseent wants to folks have the opportunity to live the american dream. it is no different than all americans who want to see their children in environments where they can learn, who want to see their families healthy and

thriving and back to work, who want to see america first. the community wants to make sure there is somebody in the oval office who is fighting for them and who is not taking them for granted. host: is your hometown emblematic of the challenges along that corridor? omarosa: as you know, the president was there often. he got to know where i grew up. he got to know about the effect of the steel mills closing down and we have not recovered from that. about the promises that were made in about the potential youngstown still offers. really good people in youngstown who want a chance to get back to in theo make their way world. they have to be given a chance. when you look at youngstown, there's a great deal of potential. and not been given the

opportunity to get back to work and so i'm happy the president has been working with corporations to bring those jobs country, bring jobs back to places like youngstown so people can earn a good living and provide for their families. what do you remember about your community growing up in the 1970's and 1980's? omarosa: the community was thriving. plant was 20e gm minutes from my house. so many people were excited to work there. i remember a certain pride that came with being from the buckeye state, from being from youngstown. you could truly use your hands and your heart and work hard and make something of yourself. i remember the community and how important family and friends were.

and i hope that once the community recovers in terms of economics, the spirit can recover as well. ms.: some other titles, buckeye, ms. youngstown. got me. you i'm a former beauty queen. i confess. that's what we do. get into beauty pageants, join the band. a very wholesome upbringing. i had a teacher, a librarian. tomboyish. she thought, you're a great athlete, rough around the edges. pageant,me about the which was the first one i

entered. thank god i did not win. i'm so competitive, i wanted to figure out, how do you win? being first runner-up was not enough. i entered the year and i won. i was the first african-american women to be this youngstown and youngstown at the miss america pageant. pageants were great for me. they taught me incredible lessons. people will judge you have you look can walk and talk. to be sharp on your feet. fitness is important and be congenial. i learned a lot about those skills while i was competing. host: when did you first meet donald trump? september, i believe the 13th, 2003. host: walk us through what happened. omarosa: like a quiz.

[laughter] 9/11.mber it was after i booked my train ticket to come up from washington, d.c. i did not know what to expect. i knew i had been selected to appear on the most incredible to runerview, a chance one of donald trump's companies. so i was selected. i was excited. i remember getting off the train and the car taking us to trump tower. if you have been to trump tower, you stand in front of it and you look at this skyscraper and realize this is the tower trump built. this is where we would live, work, sleep, play, for the next couple of months.

.e walked into the boardroom i knew he was a big personality. room,he walks into the you really don't kick the full impact of his presence. peopleed into the room were like, it's donald trump. host: another title you had from "people" magazine, the most hated reality television celebrity. omarosa: was that the title? notorious villain? host: you remember better. a reality tvn award, reality villain. best catfight. most dramatic moment. i was in a field driven by

ratings. you know what drives ratings? conflict. [laughter] so, absolutely. i will own up to all of them. ratings meant everything. once i got to the top, i wanted show i did,l every i was not only the queen of the boardroom, i wasn't just the greatest villain, but i dominated the screen. i understood what drove that business and what drives that business is ratings. no one wants to tune into a boring television show. host: do you apply that to this job? omarosa: no, this is different. on that show, there were 16 jobestants trying to win a with donald trump. the there were scenarios that

were not realistic. we had to come up with a concert for jessica simpson. in newa lemonade stand york city. i'm certainly not selling lemonade in the white house. we've come a long way. grateful for that opportunity to have experienced show business in a way and to learn the business through the eyes of donald trump. host: this is not your first time in the white house. gore,a: i started with working in scheduling and then i was promoted and i worked with rob nash, charlie duncan. it was incredible watching the political process. i was so young. . was a little fresh

previous i had those appointments because it prepared me for the position i am in now and it helped me understand know one thing is greater than the incredible agenda we have and to stay focused on that. sometimes i got caught up in one issue, thinking that was it. this was the big one. sometimes you go from crisis to crisis and you deal with policy to policy. you get up and you get back in the ring and keep fighting. host: coming back in a different capacity, how different are things from the clinton-gore years to be trump white house. ? omarosa: it is night and day. before we were going through

impeachment. there was travel-gate, watergate. every week of the clinton white house there was something-gate. it was a very tense environment. we had a special prosecutor, a guy named ken starr. he was the bogeyman back then. i've spent more time in that white house responding to requests than doing anything else. i remember going through every document trying to find that things can starr wanted -- starr wanted. now i get to do my job and help thise the course of country's direction. so many americans told us we

were heading in the right direction and i am proud to put this country back on track. decide youdid you are going to support donald trump? initially you said hillary clinton was going to run in 2016. omarosa: there is no secret i was a democrat. diehard dem. a working-class neighborhood. my family was involved with labor. that is what you two. you are part of the democratic party. as i continued to go through my somebodyaccomplish things, some of the promises the democrats were making to my community, look at youngstown. party kepts the making to that community, the more they made promises, the more you see the country, the deteriorate.e city

they make more promises and then he plant was shut down. the steel mill was shut down. you looked for the leadership and it wasn't there. , even barackt hope obama, and incredible campaign. hope was truly in the air. expectations were high. i can't tell you youngstown is better off eight years later than it was before he took office. i can tell you they are worse off. hillary decided to run again, i thought this was a no-brainer. they had difficulties with people who decided to support barack obama over hillary the first time and they never forgot

. i was one of those people who chose to support barack obama over hillary clinton. long before he declared, i had hoped i could make an impact for her campaign. the truth of the matter, i was democraticspace in politics because of choices i low against the clinton camp, support the obamas. like, so i of started to vote my issues, independently, trying to see the party rebound. i was happy when donald trump declared he was going to run. , knowingredibly happy him and what he has accomplished and what he would be able to bring to the white house. the moment he declared, and you

can look at these interviews, you saw how passionate i was he was the right choice for america. host: so when in the general election did you know he was going to win? only from the general -- i did not have to get that far. in the primary, he had 17 primary candidates, he knocked each one of them off. general, theo the pollsters were telling us he was going to lose by a landslide. that is not what we were feeling on the campaign trail. tour and weoman's went county by county and what i nothing there was

corresponding to what the data was saying. the data was saying he was down by 17. the people were saying he is our choice. we were filling up auditoriums, stadiums. people were following our boss with signs. they were saying he would never get the nomination. he got it. he would not win. he did it. but the pollsters were saying and dependence, -- and the pundits did not match what america was saying. i did not have to look at the , i openedw firsthand up a rally for donald trump in ohio. walking out there addressing my fellow buckeyes. the energy in that room alone

was enough for me to feel and to know that same spirit was in that room. , people waiting to see donald j. trump. host: you have something that is a rare ticket, privileges to be president. what does that mean? omarosa: that is part of my job. i don't know why everybody focuses on that. if you don't talk to the president, how are you supposed to communicate his views and vision, perspectives? that comes with being a director of communications. it is also dictated by him. he allows people to have access to him because he is transparent . he has nothing to hide. he talks directly to the people,

utilizing media, including twitter. he is accessible. that is why americans like this president and support him. host: is he different privately? omarosa: i wish people could see .ore of his wit and humor when he gets going, telling a joke, it's pretty incredible. i've had quite a few laughs with the campaign trail. we would get going about something. i would love to see the country get a glimpse of that. now that he is here, he is so incredibly focused. he is laser focused on delivering the promises he made to the american people and so i see a different side of him. even though i've known him 14 years, a different side i had

not seen before. it gives me confidence that we are going to do what he said we were going to do. we are going to win. i love it. here onewe were to sit year from now, how would you measure your success? omarosa: well, my success is tied to the president delivering on what we said we were going to do. theuld like to look at projects i've worked on already, had an opportunity to work with a team to get an executive order committing to supporting, funding, and advancing historically black colleges and universities. i've had an opportunity to travel to haiti. he made a commitment to haiti that he would be a champion for them. already on the ground, the

president of haiti, we made a commitment to farmers, the military, and just now i came from the listening session going on downstairs. he's done, i said have a list, everything he's going to do, i have a list. we are keeping our word. one year from now, that long list of commitments, making sure they are actually helping americans and that it is actually allowing americans to be safe, allowing americans to be first, and making america great again. host: as you know, there is resistance in this country. we are divided nation. you were at tysons corner and faced some angry voters. what is a like for you when you find these americans dislike the president? omarosa: mental illness israel.

[laughter] -- is real. [laughter] i think those people had some challenges. i'm not new to this. this is not my first rodeo. i understand there will be opposition. you should expect that. you have to know that donald trump is tough. i'm tough. we are going to continue to fight for this country. host: are you enjoying your job? omarosa: i love what i do. i have the best job in the white house. host: and finally, what would your dad think? omarosa: my dad would be proud of me. i have exceeded all expectations for a little girl who grew up in westlake projects, in abject poverty, with a single mother, limited resources and opportunities. found a way, through

faith in god and a supportive mother, and an incredible determination to be the best i could be. i find myself sitting right here at the center of the political universe, helping to really impact change in ways that cannot be measured. host: thank you for your time. [captions copyright national cable satellite corp. 2016] [captioning performed by the national captioning institute, which is responsible for its caption content and accuracy. visit ncicap.org] president trump was questioned by reporters about rising tensions with north korea. here is their exchange. by miller'syou mean teres solutions are locked and loaded? >> we are looking at that carefully. i hope they understand the gravity of what i said. what i said is what i mean.

hopefully they will understand what i said and the meaning of those words. those words are easy to understand. backn't want to talk about channels. we want to talk about a country that has misbehaved for many ,ears, decades, actually through numerous administrations. they did not want to take on the issue. i am taking it on. we will either be very or very successful in a different way, quickly. thereela merkel says would be no military solution. why is she wrong? is speaking for germany. let her speak for germany. she is a good woman. she is a friend of the von cup. she is not referring to the united states. send asaid you wanted to strong message. what do you say to your critics?

pres. trump: it's me. ,f somebody said the same words they would say what a great thing, a wonderful thing. you, we have tens of millions of people in this country that are happy with what i am saying. they are saying finally we have a president sticking up for our nation and friends and allies. this man will not get away with what he is doing, believe me. if he utters one threat in the overt threat, which and hisone for years, family, if he does anything with respect to guam, or any other american territory or ally, he will truly regret it and he will regret it fast. thank you very much. thank you very much. later he held a meeting with

rex tillerson, h.r. mcmaster, hownikki haley to discuss to respond to threats from north korea. they spoke from new jersey. the president talked to reporters about north korea and u.s. policy in afghanistan, venezuela, and cuba. pres. trump: thank you, everybody. we had a very good meeting. we are very much in agreement and are unified and we have been from the beginning, this is something that has to stop. we feel that very strongly. i will be speaking to