Exclusive: Kellyanne Conway on the Leaks in Washington and the Dangers of the Swamp 

Conway is used to the slings and arrows from the left and the media, but a growing number of former administration officials in Washington, sources “close to Trump” or sources “familiar with the family’s thinking,” express doubts about her loyalty or usefulness to the administration.

These sources are often hesitant to go on the record, not exactly eager to risk vengeance from someone close to the president.

The complaints are varied. She’s not in charge of communications, but she communicates. She’s not in charge of policy, but she’s political. She’s not in charge of staff, but she is keenly aware of what the staff is doing. She is kind and works to earn your trust, but some question if you can trust her.

Former Special Assistant to the president, Cliff Sims, took a direct shot at Conway in his tell-all book published in January. In one chapter, Sims revealed he witnessed Conway leaking to reporters in real time via text message.

In my conversation with Conway, she did not deny talking to reporters behind the scenes, explaining it as one of the strengths that she brought to the administration.

“It’s a tough balance,” she explained. “I try to lend support to what press and comms are doing while respecting that they take the lead on those matters.”

Many Trump supporters might prefer that the administration entirely ignore the “fake news” media, but Conway argues that the president is the one that wants her to communicate with them.

“It’s part of my job to provide information to the press, yet I don’t speak to them as much as the president might like or as much as they would like,” she said. “Fortunately, the president communicates directly with the American people through his various platforms.”

But is Conway a professional communicator or one of the “leakers” described by the president?

She had a lot to say to the leakers, many of whom have left the building, but she claimed it was easy to identify the sources.

“They act like we don’t know and that we don’t see,” she said. “The West Wing is a very small place.”

Leakers fall into three categories, according to Conway.

First, she says that leakers attempt to misdirect attention from themselves by calling other people leakers. Second, they’re rarely comfortable speaking publicly with the press. Third, she says that leakers believe it helps cover their tracks if they constantly berate the “fake news” in front of their colleagues.

But the ultimate tell, according to Conway, is any sudden drop of negative press attention directed their way.

Conway suggested she could blow up the entire Washington information game — but warns that it might put some reporters in an uncomfortable spot.

“I’ve often told reporters that if I reveal the true leakers that have been in this administration, I’d be forced to reveal the ‘leakees,’ too,” she says, referring to the reporters who receive the leaks. “That normally compels them to shift topics to the weather.”

After his book was published in January, Cliff Sims appeared on MSNBC’s Morning Joe to promote it. Hosts Joe Scarborough and Mika Brzezinski, the once prominent prom king and queen of the swamp, were delighted with the latest gossip about Conway.

During the interview, Sims details his own challenge for her.

“All she has to do is tell every reporter in Washington, DC, she can publicly say, ‘if I’ve ever trashed the president off the record to you, I release you from the off-the-record binds,’” he said.

“That would be a very very long line of reporters,” Scarborough smirked.

But Conway has little interest in responding to “Joe and Mika” or Sims, who the president berated on Twitter after his appearance on their show.

“Working women spend so much of their careers amassing power. Information is power,” she said. “Why surrender it so freely?”

Despite the chaos, the leaking, and the bitterness of the first 500 days described in the Sims book, Conway appears unaffected by the latest round of criticism.

She remains among the few high-ranking former campaign officials still in the West Wing, which includes Steve Miller, social media director Dan Scavino, and, of course, the family — Jared Kushner and Ivanka Trump.

Oddly enough, former Governor Chris Christie released his own tell-all book on the same day as Sims. He has nothing but praise for Conway.

“She knew how to speak to Donald Trump,” Christie wrote, recalling her work on the campaign. “She could get a point across without being caustic but was still frank and direct.”

Conway steered away from any questions about her accomplishments in the campaign or the West Wing, carefully redirecting all credit to the president.

She said she was puzzled why some served in the administration despite professing misery in their high-ranking positions.

“The moment that you see it as more of a burden than a blessing, you should seriously consider moving on, because the president is right, many people would love to have these jobs,” she said.

The list is long.

Top aides such as Mike Flynn, Reince Priebus, Gary Cohn, John Kelly, Steve Bannon, Sean Spicer, Joe Hagin, and H.R. McMaster were either forced out, quit out of frustration, sold out, or were fired. And don’t forget Anthony Scaramucci, who flamed out after a crass phone call with a reporter.

How is it that Conway has survived so long?

“I’ve been around my share of emotional and egotistical men, so maybe I’m an accidental expert on them,” Conway said, referring to her career. “Surviving them is easy; thriving in this environment is the true reward.”

She offered some insight about working for Trump, dismissing many of the tropes developed by the media.

“He easily detects and deflects nonsense,” she says.

Success on the Trump team is not about the kamikaze loyalty displayed by so many former Trump officials, she explained. And it’s not about being the most frequent or last person in the room on every issue. Despite what you might have heard, non-stop flattery of the president does not save you from exile. She claims that Trump is not convinced by people “puffing themselves out to impress him” in person or on TV.

“When I appear on TV, my primary audience is neither the president nor the press,” Conway said. “It is the people.”

For Conway, it appears, success lies in knowing your strengths in the administration and using them wisely.

Trump’s loyal supporters treat her like a celebrity, despite public mockery from the Washington political class.

As she walked through the Conservative Political Action Conference (CPAC) last weekend, fans flocked to watch her participate in an interview before turning with a smile to greet them and snap some selfies.

Conway earned celebrity status in the world of Trump supporters, as she frequently appears on television to defend the president, despite public derision from the anchors who keep inviting her back. Her panel appearance at CPAC, however, focused on promoting the dangers of the opioid crisis and crediting the president for his unprecedented attempt to address it.

“The president acknowledges and appreciates those of us who are here for the right reasons,” Conway explained. “He prefers the company of people who are happy warriors like him.”

Conway said she did not consider herself a swamp creature, despite years of working in politics and media in Washington, DC. A swamp creature, she argues, is someone that leverages their power and influence for easy money and political status.

She reminds critics that she had a chance at post-election riches after her role in the biggest electoral upset in modern political history but chose to serve the president instead, at his request. That decision landed her in the center of the swamp for the foreseeable future, but she appears comfortable.

“There’s a huge difference between studying and understanding the swamp and diving into the quicksand of the swamp,” she explains.