Trump’s lavish $45,000 Christmas gift to Natalie Harp revealed in new report

Newly published financial disclosures from the administration reveal that President Donald Trump presented substantial holiday cash gifts to four of his White House aides.

According to the annual filings released last week, executive assistant Natalie Harp, communications adviser Margo Martin, and Chamberlain Harris, the deputy director of Oval Office operations, each received $45,000.

A gift of $20,000 was awarded to Walt Nauta, the director of Oval Office operations. Based on the White House salary report submitted to Congress, Harp, Martin, and Harris earn $150,000 a year, whereas Nauta receives $175,000 annually.

A White House official, speaking anonymously as they were not cleared to discuss the matter publicly, stated that Trump "has a longstanding practice of giving Christmas gifts to people in his orbit, including at times employees and aides, both in government and in his time in the private sector."

The official did not confirm whether other aides received payments from the president, but stated the funds were unrelated to the "individuals’ official government duties, and therefore are entirely permissible under relevant legal and ethical standards."

The Washington Post first published details about the financial gifts on Tuesday.

Harp is a regular presence alongside Trump and is known to carry a portable printer to produce hard copies of favorable news articles and social media posts, accommodating the president’s preference for reading documents on paper rather than digital screens.

Martin has worked with Trump since his initial term, starting as a White House press assistant before moving to Palm Beach, Florida, to assist with his media operations after he lost the 2020 election to Democrat Joe Biden. She subsequently rejoined the White House staff following his 2024 election win.

Earlier this year, Trump named Harris to the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, a body that holds oversight over the president’s White House ballroom project.

Nauta, who previously worked as a valet to Trump, was charged in 2023 alongside Mar-a-Lago property manager Carlos De Oliveira for allegedly conspiring with Trump to obstruct an FBI probe regarding classified records the Republican retained after leaving the White House following his first term. Prosecutors dismissed the charges against them in 2024.

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