A retired Air Force staff sergeant, who was once featured on the "The Oprah Winfrey Show," allegedly impersonated a reporter to attend a Donald Trump press conference and was offered a job interview during the event by the presidential candidate.
As caught on C-SPAN, Alicia Watkins questioned Trump at a press conference in front of the Old Post Office building in Washington, D.C., which Trump is currently renovating into a hotel.
Watkins identified herself as a 9/11 survivor and veteran of Iraq and Afghanistan and told Trump she loves "the policy that you have for the military." She then asked if his new hotel would have jobs for vets.
"I wanted to know if Trump Tower would be part of that veteran job ... ?" she started to ask, before Trump interrupted.
"We are doing some of that, actually, already," Trump said. "We have it very much involved."
Then he offered her a job opportunity.
"What are you looking for? What kind of a position?" Trump asked Watkins.
"Come up here, come here," he continued, beckoning her onto the stage. "You look so smart, good, do you mind if I do a job interview right now?"
Watkins told the crowd she does "design," "briefs" and "all types of decoration."
Trump directed her to speak with one of his managers.
"If we can make a good deal on the salary, she's going to probably have a job," Trump said.
Reporters at the event seemed skeptical on whether the gesture was authentic.
"What we just witnessed here was pretty remarkable," an unidentified journalist asked after Watkins stepped off the stage. "I mean, this is a complete stranger who just came up and you offered her a job. What inside your gut gave you the feeling?"
"I felt good about her," Trump responded. "I have a gut instinct. And we're allowed to have that. And I looked at her and she asked a question, and it was a very positive question. … Now maybe she won't qualify, but I think she will. I think she, to me, looked like a good person. I have instincts about people. ... She made an immediate impression."
According to CNN, Watkins is not a reporter, but received press credentials from the Trump campaign anyway to attend the press Trump media conference and ask a question.
Representatives of the news network said the Trump campaign told them Watkins works for "a site called Troops Media, which focuses on military and veterans issues."
Air Force Times contacted two companies named "Troop Media," which both said Watkins had never worked for them.
An iInternet search for "Troops Media" returned no results.
CNN said it "received a call from a woman who identified herself as Alicia Watkins who said she would send an email explaining 'why Troop Media is no longer on the Internet as of today.' "
"The woman, who said her phone was about to run out of battery, hung up while being asked if she still wanted to identify herself as a reporter," CNN said. "The woman called from a blocked number and did not leave any contact information. The promised email has yet to arrive."
Troop Media does have a website that reports on the military, but a representative for the site said that Watkins had not been employed there.
Air Force Times reached out to the Trump campaign for comment, but has not yet received a response. Reporters have also been unable to contact Watkins.
Watkins was featured on "The Oprah Winfrey Show" in 2010 to discuss her life as a homeless veteran. She documented several days in her life, living in a rented car and eating microwaveable food.
In 2015, the "Oprah: Where Are They Now?" TV series featured an update, and it looked like things had turned around for Watkins. She said she had been accepted into attended Harvard under the G.I. Bill and that she was engaged.
And now, it appears, she may have ’s got a job at one of Trump’s hotels.
