Robert Greene’s “48 Laws of Power”, was created based on similar traits of those who were seen as elite, those who were in control, and men and women who held power. Inspired by the story of Julius Ceasar inciting the Great Roman Civil War, the book, its strategies, and even its questionable tactics are still a fan-favorite for readers from all walks of life; from prisoners to politicians. This week, Omarosa launched a small war of her own; shocking the country and leaving us with more questions than answers. Now, we have no idea if Omarosa Manigault has ever read the “The 48 Laws of Power”, but after this week we are convinced that her strategies, calculated moves, and bold displays seem like plays out of this very popular ‘war-manual’.
Law 3: Conceal Your Intentions
In this law, the goal is to keep people unaware of your plans and intentions. No will be able to prepare if they have no idea of your intentions. Staff within the White House would have ever suspected that a member would secretly record conversations. Omarosa claims she needed to have conversations recorded in order to cover her own as*; but perhaps, with the release of her latest best seller, her true intentions could have been to write a book, or to have access to this inside information for other purposes. No one will really know – and that is KEY to Law #3.
Law 6: Court Attention At All Costs
So far, Omarosa has commanded the news cycle with her leaks, and she has made a spectacle of this audio from within the walls White House. Omarosa is courting all this attention by not turning down any invites. She has been invited on some of the biggest talk shows on mainstream television, including an exclusive sit-down with Chuck Todd on NBC’s “Meet The Press”, “CBS This Morning”, “The Daily Show” and a host of others shows on major networks. She is also the talk of late night television; how’s that for someone who was only supposed to see 15-minutes of fame?
Law 12: Use selective honesty and generosity to disarm your victim
We all know that Omarosa has made some questionable moves, with questionable motives, and at no point in time have we been able to genuinely say this woman is an honest person. Although she is plagued with credibility issues, when we study the 48 Laws, we understand that Law 12 instructs you to “use selective honesty“; the concept is that one so-called sincere move, will cover up all of the dishonest moves. The “sincere move” here was to expose this President and his administration for who the American public already knows they are. Also, Omarosa has said in many interviews that she knew the public would not believe her, which was her reason for using quotes within her book that tie directly to the tapes she’s released so far; and some she hasn’t released. The fact that Omarosa is able to back up her claims, have many who had not supported her prior to this, openly defending her. But be cautious, this 12th Law still says its acceptable to deceive when necessary.
Law 14: Pose as a friend, work as a spy
From the recordings we’ve heard so far, we understand that Omarosa not only recorded, but she probed, she asked questions, and she tried her best to get administrative members to say what she needed them to say. She was the perfect spy – a spy working for herself! Omarosa lived, breathed, and became this law, and she did it effortlessly. Donald Trump was basically Omarosa’s mentor, someone she claimed to look up to and aspired to be; this however, did not stop her from recording private conversations. She could definitely play the next 007.
Law 17: Keep others in suspended terror: cultivate an air of unpredictability
Using fear is a form of control. According to Politico.com, “People are terrified’: Trump staffers live in fear of Omarosa’s next tape,” was the headline published on August 14th. Omarosa’s slow and daily revealing of leaks of actual audio from within the White House has some staffers on edge. Her tapes not only aid in discrediting Trump, but it also discredits any staffer that comes against her and denies what she has written in her book. Omarosa has been able to dismantle their denial with the release of each sound bite. This has created the “air of unpredictability” that has left aids unsure of exactly what to say to the press.
Law 25: Re-create yourself
The rules of recreativing oneself is to create an I.D. that never bores, and demands attention. When you are recreating yourself, one must be in total control of their own image. One way to do this is to create large spectacles in order to display power and control. But, who is Omarosa? Who’s side is she on? What’s her real purpose? She manages over and over again to recreate herself in order to satisfy her own personal agenda. Prior to her firing, she was a traitor to the black community. Today, she’s being deemed as one of the forces that can help in tearing down this dysfunctional administration. But the question will continue to be – who is she, really?
Law 28: Enter action with boldness
Whether you love her or hate her, every person on earth respects a bold and daring individual. Although Omarosa hasn’t been a crowd fave, her bold moves and flawless interviews have earned her some respect across parties and racial lines. Donald Trump has decided to sue Omarosa in order to keep her quiet. As she continues to do her press runs, she still has to proceed with caution. However, the act of secretly recording a standing President, and releasing the details to the public is most definitely a bold one. On yesterday, Trevor Noah asked Omarosa if she was in fear for her life, she said, “If you ever see me in a fight with a bear, pray for the bear.” Now that’s bold.
Law 30: Make your accomplishments seem effortless
Last night Trevor Noah told Omarosa, “You are one of the few people that have managed to out-Trump, Trump!” Trevor also jokingly asked Omarosa if she would endorse the company that provides her sound equipment because of the high quality of the audio of her secret tapes. Omarosa was silent on how she was able to get this audio, and she made it seem effortless and simple, which is key to Law 30.
Law 37: Create Compelling Spectacles
Requirements of Law 37 are, astounding appearances and staged spectacles. Can you think of a more compelling spectacle than Omarosa possibly having audio recordings of the President saying the N-word?
Law 39: Stir Up Waters To Catch Fish
Katrina Pierson (spokeswoman) and Lynne Patton (former assistant to Eric Trump) denied ever having a conversation about Donald Trump using the N-word. Pierson even claimed, according to the NY Post excerpt below that Omarosa, “sounded like she was writing a script for a movie.” After Pierson denied the claim, Omarosa released audio proving they had discussed Trump using “a word” – the audio does not confirm the specific word. Most of us are smart, and can use our context clues.
Omarosa stirred up waters with these claims; Pierson had to return to television to clear up her comments, saying“No one ever denied the existence of conversations about a reported ‘Apprentice’ tape. Of course there were multiple discussions about it … because Omarosa was obsessed with it. What has been definitively refuted is that we never had a call confirming that Frank Luntz, or anyone else, directly heard Donald J. Trump use derogatory language on this alleged tape.”
Law 46: Never Appear Perfect
On “The Daily Show”, Omarosa started with an apology for not showing up to Trevor’s show when asked while she was still in the Trump administration. Omarosa also stated how she was aware of the damaging things Trump has said about Muslims, Haitians, Mexicans, and people of color, and how she realized it was time to leave the administration. She was waiting to find a replacement so there would not be a void, but was relived of her duties before she could do so. Omarosa, never comes out and says it was an error being a part of this administration, but she does seem to admit a few wrongs.
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