Money Matters, Simplified.
Carrie Prejean loses Miss California crown, fires back
by Natalie James - June 11, 2009 - comments
The “shocked” Prejean said she can’t believe Trump blamed her for treating people badly
Los Angeles, June 11: Miss California Carrie Prejean, who stirred up a national controversy while answering question about same-sex marriage unfavorably during the Miss USA pageant, finally got the axe from the pageant's boss Donald Trump. Her Miss California Crown has been taken away.
On Wednesday, Prejean got the ax from the owner-organizer of the Miss California USA pageant and Miss USA pageant, Donald Trump, who claimed she was fired because “she hadn’t been holding up her end of the agreement she signed when she entered the pageant.”
Trump’s stand on sacking Prejean
Trump told TMZ.com that Prejean violated her contact by refusing to appear at roughly 30 events they offered her. “I told Carrie she needed to get back to work and honor her contract with the Miss California USA Organization and I gave her the opportunity to do so. Unfortunately it just doesn’t look like it is going to happen.”
He continued: "To me she was the sweetest thing. Everyone else she treated like (expletive)", adding that she is a “beautiful young woman and I wish her well as she pursues her other interests”.
Miss California pageant’s executive director, Keith Lewis, said: “This was a decision based solely on contract violations, including Ms. Prejean’s unwillingness to make appearances on behalf of the Miss California USA organization.”
Prejean’s reaction to the decision
It took no time for Prejean to fire back at the pageant honchos’ unfavorable decision. The 22-year-old said pageant officials offered her to pose semi-nude for Playboy, for which she could get $140,000, and appear on "I'm a Celebrity ... Get me Out of Here" with Spencer and Heidi Pratt. But she rejected both offers.
However, Lewis said that the Miss California USA pageant organizers were merely passing every offer to her because she had asked that they do so.
Contrary to Lewis’s claims, Prejean insists she has been consistently cooperative, and claimed the real motivation behind her firing was political. "What's behind this, I think, is a political debate. They don't agree with the stance that I took [on California's Proposition 8].... Shanna [Moakler] is trying to bash me. They don't like me. From day one they wanted me out, and they got what they wanted," she said.
The “shocked” Prejean said she can’t believe Trump blamed her for treating people badly. "I was very respectful of people even when they slandered me and humiliated me," she said. "I have not once stooped down to their level."
Apparently happy with the Pageant officials’ latest decision that orders Prejean to relinquish her title, Moakler said: “My faith has been restored in the Miss Universe Organization and with Donald Trump.”
Moakler had quit as pageant director for Miss California USA last month after Prejean was allowed to keep her crown even after missing some events. Now, she said she'd be willing to come back with the Miss USA organization.