Former White House aide Omarosa Manigault Newman declared that she 鈥渨ill not be silenced鈥� by President Donald Trump, remaining defiant as her public feud with her former boss appeared to shift to a possible legal battle.

In an interview Tuesday with The Associated Press, Manigault Newman, who is promoting her new book about her time in Trump鈥檚 orbit, said she believes the president鈥檚 campaign is trying to keep her from telling her story. She commented just hours after Trump鈥檚 campaign announced it was filing an arbitration action against her, alleging violations of a secrecy agreement she signed.

鈥淚 will not be intimidated,鈥� she told the AP. 鈥淚鈥檓 not going to be bullied by Donald Trump.鈥�

Still, the former reality TV star-turned-political aide declined to answer several questions about her experiences during her year as the highest-ranking African-American aide in Trump鈥檚 White House, citing the arbitration action. She said she鈥檇 been interviewed by special counsel Robert Mueller鈥檚 office, but would not discuss details.

But Manigault Newman insisted she pushed for diversity at the White House, which currently has no African-American in a senior role following her departure.

Manigault Newman continued to unleash scathing criticism of the 72-year-old Trump, saying he鈥檚 in mental decline and unfit to be president, and is intentionally sowing racial division. She accused him of using his rowdy political rallies to divide, even suggesting Trump is promoting violence.

Discussing the differences between their views, she said: 鈥淥ne, I want to see this nation united as opposed to divided. I don鈥檛 want to see a race war as Donald Trump does.鈥�

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The White House counters that Manigault Newman is a disgruntled former staffer with credibility and character issues who is now trying to profit through false attacks against someone she has worked with and supported for more than a decade, including his presidential campaign.

鈥淪he worked here for a year and didn鈥檛 have any of these things to say,鈥� White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders told reporters in Washington. 鈥淚n fact, everything she said was quite the opposite. And not just the year that she worked here, but the time that she spent on the campaign trail and I think it鈥檚 really sad what she鈥檚 doing at this point.鈥�

Manigault Newman, who has known Trump since she was a contestant in 2003 on his reality TV show, 鈥淭he Apprentice,鈥� said his proclivity for racial division is evident 鈥渨hen you see at every single opportunity he insults African-Americans.鈥� She noted, as examples, Trump鈥檚 recent criticism of NBA player LeBron James and California Democratic Rep. Maxine Waters.

Trump recently tweeted that it took the 鈥渄umbest man on television鈥� 鈥� also an African-American 鈥� to make James 鈥渓ook smart,鈥� and he regularly refers to Waters as 鈥渓ow I.Q.鈥�

鈥淗e wants to divide this nation,鈥� said Manigault Newman, who spoke to the AP during the publicity tour for her book, 鈥淯nhinged,鈥� in which she portrays Trump as racist and misogynistic.

鈥淗e wants to pit his base against successful African-Americans,鈥� she said. 鈥淗e uses his rallies to really encourage people to bring down African-Americans. That is truly evidence that this man is not trying to unite us. But he is specifically trying to divide us.鈥�

In addition to speaking publicly about her experiences in Trump鈥檚 White House, Manigault Newman has been releasing audio recordings of conversations and meetings held in the building, including a snippet of one she says is of her telephone conversation with Trump the day after she was fired in December by White House chief of staff John Kelly.

She declined Tuesday to answer questions about her recordings, which she has described as a 鈥渢reasure trove,鈥� and the extent to which colleagues are secretly recording each other at the White House, again citing the arbitration action.

But she defended herself against criticism that she didn鈥檛 do enough to help African-Americans. She noted that hiring and personnel were the responsibility of others in the White House, but said she has 鈥渢ons and tons of emails鈥� in which she pushed job candidates for consideration.

鈥淎nd it just didn鈥檛 seem good enough for this White House,鈥� Manigault Newman said, suggesting the president is uninterested having a diverse staff. 鈥淭here is no excuse that there鈥檚 not another African-American assistant to the president. No excuse whatsoever.鈥�

She talked about helping secure funding for the nation鈥檚 historically black colleges and universities, of which she is a graduate.

When you give a crazed, crying lowlife a break, and give her a job at the White House, I guess it just didn鈥檛 work out. Good work by General Kelly for quickly firing that dog!

鈥� Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump)

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Associated Press writer Laurie Kellman in Washington contributed to this report.

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Darlene Superville, The Associated Press

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