Reality show personality turned Donald Trump operative Omarosa Manigault praised the president's actions on historically black colleges and universities and other issues, saying, "Every single promise he made we've outlined and we are checking off one by one."
In February, Trump met with HBCU leaders from around the country, including Atlanta, and signed an executive order aimed at signaling his commitment to the institutions, saying that those schools will be "an absolute priority for this White House."
Afterward, Morehouse College President John Silvanus Wilson Jr. offered a muted assessment and mentioned U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos' clumsy praise of historically black institutions, calling them "pioneers when it comes to school choice."
"HBCUs were not created because the 4 million newly freed blacks were unhappy with the choices they had," Wilson wrote in an open letter to the college community following the White House meeting. "They were created because they had no choices at all. That is not just a very important distinction, it is profoundly important."
Credit: Getty Images
Credit: Getty Images
Speaking with "Extra's" AJ Calloway , Omarosa (usually known by solely her first name) had nothing but high marks for her former mentor on "The Apprentice" and "The Celebrity Apprentice. "
"You look at what we have accomplished to date, everyone knows that we are going to do exactly what we said we were going to do," she said. "We started to bring jobs to areas and identifying companies that would keep their business here in the United States. The first 30 days, already we have done so much and we have so much to go."
She also saluted the commander in chief's frequent use of Twitter: “I think it’s fantastic that the president is able to speak directly to the American people. He doesn’t have to go through the filter of the media to interrupt what he says or what he means.”
The "Extra" interview was largely upbeat, with the only ding (and a mild one at that) reserved for the media.
“Everyone is rushing to get the story out," she said, "but they are not rushing to get it right.”
