Via/Reuters
In response to recent claims that former President Donald Trump used a racial slur to refer to a Black competitor on “The Apprentice,” and that it was captured on tape, the Trump campaign resorted to aggressive rebuttals and accusations. The allegation was made by former “Apprentice” producer Bill Pruitt, according to Slate.
Trump representative Steven Cheung immediately went on the offensive on X (formerly Twitter) on May 30. “Prove it, b****,” he wrote, as reported by The New Republic. “You can’t because it’s a fake and bulls*** story your dumb a** is peddling because Biden is hemorrhaging support from Black Americans.”
The Biden campaign has indeed been struggling to maintain the strong Black voter support that helped propel Joe Biden to the Democratic nomination and presidency in 2020. In a current one-on-one contest against Trump, Biden has only 63 percent support from Black registered voters, compared to 92 percent in 2020, according to a New York Times survey. Trump has intensified efforts to win over these voters, recently speaking at a rally in the South Bronx.
Pruitt, one of four producers for the first two seasons of “The Apprentice,” had signed a nondisclosure agreement that carried a $5 million penalty, which he claims expired this year, per CNN. Pruitt’s accusation that Trump used the n-word repeats a long-running rumor.
In 2018, while promoting her book, Omarosa Manigault Newman—a former “Apprentice” competitor and Trump White House aide—claimed she had heard a recording of Trump using the racial slur. CNN has not independently verified the existence of this footage.
According to Pruitt, Trump used the term while on camera, discussing with showrunner Jay Bienstock, Trump staffer Carolyn Kepcher, and other producers about Jackson’s performance, specifically his handling of Manigault Newman. The topic was who would win the first season of the show. Pruitt wrote, “‘Yeah,’ he says to no one in particular, ‘but, I mean, would America buy a n— winning?” Trump was “serious, and he is adamant about not hiring Jackson,” Pruitt continued. Jackson eventually lost to fellow contender Bill Rancic.
Pruitt further revealed, “Afterward, we film the final meeting in the boardroom, where Jackson and Rancic are scrutinized by Trump, who, we already know, favors Rancic. Then we wrap production, pack up, and head home. There is no discussion about what Trump said in the boardroom, about how the damning evidence was caught on tape. Nothing happens.”
Trump’s campaign has denied the rumor. “This is a completely fabricated and bulls*** story that was already peddled in 2016,” Cheung said in a statement. “Nobody took it seriously then, and they won’t now, because it’s fake news. Now that Crooked Joe Biden and the Democrats are losing the election, they are bringing up old fake stories from the past because they are desperate.”
