TWO WHO APPEARED ON MEGYN KELLY. >> SHOULD GRETCHEN AND REGINA
RESIGN.
RESIGN. >> ABSOLUTELY YES.
>> AND THE BOARD.
>> THE REIGNING MISS AMERICA
CARA MUND WITH US EXCLUSIVELY
FROM ATLANTIC CITY.
CARA GOOD MORNING.
>> GOOD MORNING, THANK YOU FOR
HAVING ME.
HAVING ME. >> CARA, WE SHOULD POINT OUT,
YOU DO NOT HAVE OFFICIAL
PERMISSION TO BE SPEAKING WITH
US THIS MORNING.
ARE YOU KIND OF GOING ROGUE THIS
MORNING
MORNING MORNING?
MORNING? >> YOU KNOW, I’M NOT SURE HOW TO
DEFINE IT.
DEFINE IT. I’VE BEEN TOLD THERE ARE NO SET
LIMITATIONS ANYMORE, NO
RESTRICTIONS.
RESTRICTIONS. I’M NOT SURE BUT I’M GOING OUT
ON A LIMB TO MAKE SURE WHOEVER
THE NEXT WOMAN IS WHO TAKES MY
JOB, SHE KNOWS WHAT SHE’S
GETTING INTO, FEELS SUPPORTED
AND WE MAKE IT THE BEST YEAR
POSSIBLE FOR HER.
>> WE WENT INTO SOME OF THE
ALLEGATIONS IN YOUR LETTER.
WE CAN GET INTO THAT IN A
MINUTE.
MINUTE. FIRST OF ALL, WHAT HASSEN ABOUT
THE REACTION IN THE LAST FEW
WEEKS.
WEEKS. YOU SAW MISS AMERICA
ORGANIZATION SAID YOU MISS
CHARACTERIZED, UNFOUNDED
CHARACTERIZED, UNFOUNDED ACCUSATIONS.
ACCUSATIONS. WHAT’S THE FALLOUT BEEN FOR YOU?
>> WHEN THAT LETTER WENT PUBLIC
THAT I HAD TO MY SISTERS, I WAS
NERVOUS AND I WAS SCARED.
FOR THE ORGANIZATION TO THEN
COME OUT AND SAY IT WASN’T TRUE
AND IT NEEDS TO BE HANDLED
PRIVATELY WHILE THEN GOING
PUBLICLY WITH IT ON TWITTER AND
ALL SOCIAL MEDIA, IT WAS TOUGH.
BUT COMING TO THE COMPETITION, I
FELT THE LOVE AND SUPPORT ACROSS
THE NATION.
THE NATION. THAT’S REALLY WHAT’S IMPORTANT
TO ME, TO MAKE SURE MISS AMERICA
LIVES ON.
LIVES ON. WE’RE ALMOST AT 100 YEARS, SO
100 YEARS MORE.
IT’S REALLY FROM THE GRASSROOTS,
OUR LOCAL DIRECTORS, OUR STATE
DIRECTORS, OUR FANS.
IT’S ALL ABOUT THEM, TO MAKE
SURE WE CONTINUE TO PROVIDE
AMAZING OPPORTUNITIES FOR WOMEN
ACROSS AMERICA.
ACROSS AMERICA. >> CARA, IN A QUICK NUT SHELL TO
DESCRIBE WHAT YOU’RE UPSET
ABOUT, HOW WOULD YOU PUT YOUR
FINGER ON IT.
>> THERE’S A LOT OF CHALLENGES
THIS YEAR.
THIS YEAR. ANY YEAR IS CHALLENGING.
THERE ARE CHALLENGES NONE OF MY
SISTERS HAD HAD, THINGS WE
WANTED TO MAKE SURE WERE CHANGED
WHEN THE NEW LEADERSHIP CAME IN.
IT WAS FRUSTRATING AND
CONCERNING.
CONCERNING. AS A 24-YEAR-OLD WOMAN, I DO
UNDERSTAND, YES, THIS IS A JOB.
YES, I HAD BOSSES TO RESPOND TO.
BUT AT THE SAME TIME THERE’S A
SET EXPECTATION IN THE WORKPLACE
OF HOW TO BE TREATED.
AND YOU KNOW, IT’S THIS WEIRD
NAVIGATING AT 24 YEARS OLD
WHAT’S APPROPRIATE AND WHAT’S
NOT.
NOT. TO BE ABLE TO USE MY VOICE AND
TO FINALLY BE ABLE TO GO OUT AND
SAY, THIS IS WHAT’S BEEN GOING
ON AND I WANT TO MAKE IT BETTER
FOR THE NEXT GIRL.
>> CAN I ASK YOU, IN YOUR LETTER
YOU SAID IT WAS CLEAR TO YOU
FROM THE BEGINNING THERE WILL
ONLY BE ONE MISS AMERICA AT A
TIME, AND SHE ISN’T ME.
SO WHO ARE YOU SAYING WAS THE
MISS AMERICA IN YOUR
ORGANIZATION?
ORGANIZATION? >> YOU KNOW, THERE WAS A FEW
DIFFERENT ONES AND FOR
OPPORTUNITIES THAT SHOULD HAVE
BEEN SAVED FOR MISS AMERICA, FOR
HER TO GO OUT AND PROMOTE WHAT
HER CAUSE IS, TO BE ABLE TO USE
HER VOICE.
HER VOICE. I’M A PRODUCT OF THIS
ORGANIZATION.
ORGANIZATION. IT TOOK ME FOUR YEARS TO WIN THE
STATE TITLE TO BECOME MISS
AMERICA, AND YOU HAVE THIS DREAM
OF WHAT THE YEAR IS GOING TO BE.
UNFORTUNATELY IT JUST DIDN’T
NECESSARILY HAPPEN THE WAY THAT
I HAD HOPED.
>> BUT CARA, YOU SAID IN THIS
LETTER, AND IT’S A LENGTHY ONE,
YOU CALLED OUT GRETCHEN CARLSON
AND SAID YOU WERE GIVEN A SET OF
MANDATORY TALKING POINTS THAT
YOU HAD TO REPEAT IN EVERY
INTERVIEW.
INTERVIEW. DO YOU REMEMBER WHAT THEY WERE?
>> I DO.
>> I DO. I DO VERY CLEARLY.
THERE WAS THREE POINTS.
I ACTUALLY HAD SENT IN A FEW
TALKING POINT OF THINGS I WANTED
TO SAY AS MISS AMERICA, NONE OF
THEM WERE INCLUDED IN THOSE
THREE POINTS.
THREE POINTS. >> WHAT WERE THEY?
WHAT WERE THE THREE POINTS?
>> THE FIRST ONE WAS THAT MISS
AMERICA IS RELEVANT.
THE SECOND ONE WAS THAT GRETCHEN
CARLSON KIND OF STARTED AND
IGNITED THE #METOO MOVEMENT.
THE THIRD ONE IS THIS IS ABOUT
WELL EDUCATED WOMEN, GRETCHEN
WENT TO STANFORD, I WEPT TO
BROWN.
BROWN. ACROSS THE NATION I WANTED TO
TALK ABOUT MY IMPACT IN THE MAKE
A WISH, CHILDREN’S NETWORK
HOSPITALS.
HOSPITALS. I WANTED TO TALK ABOUT GETTING
HIGHER EDUCATION.
HIGHER EDUCATION. COMING AS A BROWN UNIVERSITY
GRADUATE.
GRADUATE. THERE WAS ALL THESE PERSPECTIVES
I WANTED TO DO AND USE MY VOICE.
UNFORTUNATELY I WAS GIVEN THOSE
SET TALKING POINTS.
IT’S ALL RIGHT BECAUSE WE’RE
GOING TO MAKE SURE FOR THIS NEXT
GIRL SHE’S ABLE TO GO OUT AND
TALK ABOUT WHATEVER IT IS SHE’S
PASSIONATE ABOUT.
PASSIONATE ABOUT. >> CARA, DO YOU THINK GRETCHEN
CARLSON SHOULD BE IN CHARGE OF
THE MISS AMERICA PAGEANT?
>> YOU KNOW, WHAT’S INTERESTING
IS THAT PRIOR TO MY LETTER EVEN
GOING OUT, THERE WAS 22 STATES
WHO HAD A PETITION ASKING FOR A
LEADERSHIP CHANGE.
LEADERSHIP CHANGE. AND SO MY LETTER NEVER IGNITED
ANY OF THIS.
THIS WAS DONE BY THE STATES.
AS MISS AMERICA, I SERVE AS
REPRESENTATION OF THEM.
I WOULDN’T BE A LOCAL
CONTESTANT, I WOULDN’T BE A
STATE CONTESTANT, I WOULDN’T BE
MISS AMERICA IF IT WASN’T FOR
THE HUNDREDS OF THOUSANDS OF
VOLUNTEERS ACROSS AMERICA.
>> BUT CARA, TO HODA’S QUESTION,
WHAT DO YOU THINK?
YOU’RE SPUNKY, YOU CAN SPEAK
YOUR MIND.
YOUR MIND. WHAT DO YOU THINK?
>> I DO THINK WITH THE LACK OF
CONFIDENCE THERE DOES NEED TO BE
A LEADERSHIP CHANGE, AND I THINK
IT COMES FROM MORE THAN ONE
INDIVIDUAL.
INDIVIDUAL. IT’S JUST THE CULTURE IN
GENERAL.
GENERAL. YOU KNOW, WE ARE ABOUT PROMOTING
WOMEN.
WOMEN. WE’RE ABOUT GIVING SCHOLARSHIPS,
GIVING THEM THE OPPORTUNITY.
I DON’T THINK I WOULD HAVE THE
COURAGE TO COME ON AND BE ABLE
TO TALK IF IT WASN’T FOR THIS
ORGANIZATION.
ORGANIZATION. >> YOU’RE HOLDING YOUR CROWN IN
YOUR HAND.
YOUR HAND. YOU BROUGHT IT THIS MORNING.
IS THERE A REASON FOR THAT?
JUST HOLDING ONTO IT FOR THE
LAST COUPLE OF DAYS.
>> YES.
>> YES. WHEN I WON MISS AMERICA, IT
SERVED AS A SYMBOL OF MY HARD
WORK AND DEDICATION.
AFTER THIS, YOU KNOW, THE NEXT
TWO DAYS, ONCE I GIVE IT UP,
IT’S GOING TO SERVE AS A SYMBOL
OF COURAGE AND PERSISTENCE.
FROM THIS POINT ON, THIS IS A
LAUNCHING PAD FOR WHATEVER COMES
NEXT.
NEXT. I SAY THAT NIGHT I WON MISS
AMERICA I COULD ACCOMPLISH
ANYTHING.
ANYTHING. I CAME FROM A STATE THAT HAD
NEVER HAD IT, A MISS AMERICA, I
WAS THE UNDERDOG, I WAS NEVER
PREDICTED TO WIN BUT I ALSO
NEVER PREINCOME TAX DIDDED THE
YEAR I WOULD HAVE.
THE COURAGE, THE SUPPORT.
I’M READY TO GO OUT INTO THE
REAL WORLD AND REALLY BE A
STRONG, INDEPENDENT WOMAN THAT
MAKES A DIFFERENCE.
>> CARA MUND, THANK YOU SO MUCH.
CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR YEAR.
I KNOW YOU’RE HEADED TO LAW