Days after the Trump’s campaign proposed the idea of having former White House aid Omarosa Manigault Newman settle a legal battle for allegedly violating her nondisclosure agreement (NDA) by paying for a $1 million ad campaign, Politico reported on Tuesday hat the campaign is delinquent on at least $52,000 in legal bills associated with the case.
President Donald Trump’s campaign filed an arbitration action against Omarosa in Aug. 2018 after the one-time Apprentice star published the tell-all book, Unhinged, which questions the president’s mental acuity while accusing him of consistently making racist, sexist, and misogynistic remarks. Seeking millions of dollars in damages, Trump’s campaign claimed that Omarosa had expressly violated several clauses contained in her non-disclosure agreement (NDA), including a controversial non-disparagement clause.
Law&Crime earlier this week also reported that president’s campaign organization offered Omarosa a unique election-oriented settlement: pay for a nearly one million dollar ad campaign telling the American public that she was wrong to criticize her former boss and her legal troubles will go away.
But according to a letter obtained by Politico, the Trump campaign is asking Newman to cough up a hefty sum of cash while simultaneously failing to pay the arbitrator assigned to the case. Additionally, if the campaign doesn’t pay the outstanding fees associated with the case by next week, the case will simply be tossed out and allowed to dissolve.
The letter, from the American Arbitration Association (AAA) is dated Oct. 14, and it says the campaign still owes $51,940 in upfront costs required to pay the arbitrator.
John Phillips, one of Omarosa’s lawyers, confirmed Monday that he also received a copy of the letter.
“The Trump campaign has refused to show damages with any particularity until recently saying they want Omarosa Manigault Newman to pay for campaign ads, which directly seems to violate many election laws,” he said. “Now the campaign is causing more legal expenses and time spent because they won’t pay their bills for their arbitration. We privately and publicly ask they dismiss these frivolous claims and pay our client’s legal fees.”
This news comes days after the Department of Justice filed a lawsuit against a former advisor to First Lady Melania Trump. Stephanie Winston Wolkoff is also hawking an unflattering tell-all, Melania and Me: The Rise and Fall of My Friendship with the First Lady.
Wolkoff, released a recording earlier this month of the first lady saying “who gives a fuck about Christmas stuff and decorations,” is being sued by the DOJ for violating an NDA and for publishing “confidential government information without authorization.” Lawyers immediately reacted to the suit by saying the NDA was “legally unenforceable”—unlike the John Bolton book case, which deals with classified information and prepublication review requirements.
[image via Drew Angerer and Getty Images]
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