Entertainment

NeNe's All About Making Excuses

by Kenya Foy

If I had a dime for every time NeNe Leakes resorted to blame-shifting to excuse her shortcomings, I'd quickly join her among the ranks of the "very rich." In what sounds like the equivalent of "the dog ate my homework," Leakes held steadfast to her tendency to side-step accountability by explaining away her recent Dancing With the Stars elimination. Apparently, the drama from the tumultuous Real Housewives of Atlanta reunion taping made the competition really tough.

Awww.

Now before I label Leakes' excuse as completely bogus, allow me to acknowledge her claims that her travel schedule required her to fly back to Atlanta in between show rehearsals. But that's it — this totally depletes my "cut NeNe some slack" supply.

Since the start of The Real Housewives of Atlanta started, Leakes and the word drama have pretty much become synonymous. She treats her "friends" like recyclable goods, reeling them in, disrespecting them and then publicly rallying against them when they dare to call her out on her wrongdoings. Just ask Cynthia Bailey, fellow RHOA cast member and the latest victim of the good ol' Leakes friendship hoax. Leakes absolutely thrives on initiating and indulging in the drama, therefore any show-related stress should be considered business as usual for her. Instead she spun it into another way to shirk responsibility.

She could've simply said, "Hey, competition was tough," or "I'm glad I made it this far, but stay tuned for what I have coming up next. Bloop!" But alas, that would be the gracious way to handle the situation, something Leakes is obviously and severely lacking, along with a hefty dose of humility.

I can honestly say I'm not shocked she didn't take home the trophy, even though she had the winning criteria. But what is sadly surprising are the extremes to which she will go in order to place distance between herself and sharing the blame, when that couldn't be further from the truth.