Many took to social media last week to blast U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development official, Lynne Patton, after she spoke out against Michael Cohen and in favor of President Donald Trump during his House Oversight Committee hearing last week.
Patton was brought to the hearing by Rep. Mark Meadows to deconstruct claims made by the President’s former attorney, explaining that Trump is in fact a racist. Patton told CNN, “I was not there to represent my race as a Black woman, I was there to represent somebody who knows Michael Cohen, knows him probably better than I know the Trump family.”
Actual footage of #LynnePatton at #CohenTestimony hearing today: pic.twitter.com/E1vlMqDq13
— Cherylyn/FabuNOLA (@FabuNOLA) February 28, 2019
This week, it seems Patton is willing to put her focus elsewhere. According to CNN, Patton is working on the next phase of her career and thinking about moving on to reality television, where she was asked to star in an ongoing show about Black Republicans.
Patton claims she was interested in participating in the show because it would be more of a documentary-style drama about Black Republications tied to the Trump administration rather than the table flipping antics of the BRAVO Housewives franchises. She also said that she only pursued the show because she received the green light from Trump himself as well as HUD officials.
In the end, Patton has decided not to pursue the opportunity while still working at HUD.
“With respect to Ms. Patton’s participation in a reality show, the Ethics Office provided her with advice on outside employment while working at the Department. The Ethics Office neither supports nor opposes things – it simply advises as to what is permissible within the bounds of the law,” said HUD spokesman Raffi Williams.
“I love my job,” said Patton to The Washington Post. “This is not about money, I could make 10 times the amount writing a book about a fraction of what I know. this is about me honoring my commitment to the American people. If the producers are truly interested, they’ll figure out a way to make it work without me having to compromise my own principled mission.”
A countdown to center stage
This plan for Patton to take on reality-TV has been long coming. According to The Washington Post, Patton requested an unpaid leave of absence back in October 2018 to complete the “docuseries.” In this request, Patton first asked if she could legally leave the job while filming and then be rehired later. She then asked whether or not she could continue to refer to herself as a member of the Trump administration while also attending Trump’s 2020 campaign rallies.
READ MORE: Los Angeles County police release sketch of girl whose body was found on hiking trail
The docuseries, which is still in its early phases of filming, is being produced the creators of “The Real Housewives of Potamac” and other Bravo reality shows. The intention is to offer a look into the often misunderstood mindset of Black conservatives who take political opinions outside of those typically felt amongst the Black community. The show is said to also feature Trump campaign advisor, Katrina Pierson and conservative pundit Candace Owens.
All you need now Diamond and Silk to sign up and you have yourself a real party.
The show is still in development and has yet to pitched to an actual network.