How 35-year-old Natalie Harp Became Donald Trump's Favorite Assistant
She carries a portable printer for him, posts messages on Truth Social, and even flies with him on secret flights, while she is mockingly called "the president's comfort blanket." 35-year-old Natalie Harp – a former cancer patient who, according to her statement, was saved by Trump – has become the figure closest to the US leader.
In recent years, few people in US President Donald Trump's entourage have appeared beside him as frequently as his assistant, 35-year-old Natalie Harp, reports the BBC.
Natalie Harp is one of Trump's long-standing and most loyal aides.
This week, she once again found herself in the spotlight due to statements made by Trump's opponent, Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff of Georgia. The politician unleashed a new wave of criticism on Trump and mentioned Natalie Harp in his speech, which widely circulated on social media.
Criticizing the president, Ossoff stated:
“He [Trump] doesn’t want to do his job. He wants to build his ballroom and travel with Natalie on what appears to be their entirely defenseless flying palace, gifted by the Emir of Qatar.”
The senator was referring to the new presidential aircraft Air Force One ("Aircraft One"), as well as journalists' reports that Harp likely flew with Trump on a secret flight from Turkey after the NATO summit.
Earlier, the American press reported that Trump, upon departing from Ankara in early July, used an in-flight catering van to discreetly transfer from "Aircraft One" to "Aircraft Two." The secret flight, as reported by the media, was linked to an alleged threat from Iran.
Cancer and an Unusual Path to the White House
Natalie Harp was born in California to a Christian family with conservative views. Her path to the White House can be described as atypical.
She became known for crediting Trump with saving her life.
During his first term, Trump pushed for the passage of the Right to Try Act, which gave patients broader access to experimental treatments. Harp was then able to use this opportunity to receive treatment for bone cancer using experimental methods, as traditional chemotherapy had not yielded positive results in her case.
“When the available chemotherapy didn't work, nobody wanted to take me for clinical trials […] They didn't give me the right to try experimental treatments, Mr. President. You did, and without you, I would have died waiting for their permission,” she said at the 2020 Republican National Convention.
After the event, Trump said that Natalie Harp, with her appearance, "lit up the television screen like few" he had ever seen.
Natalie Harp, who frequently spoke about her treatment experience and expressed gratitude to Trump, was quickly recognized within the MAGA ("Make America Great Again") wing of the Republican Party.
Soon after, she joined the campaign's advisory board during Trump's 2020 election campaign.
"Trump's Biggest Supporter"
After Trump's defeat in the 2020 election, Harp became a host on the right-wing conservative cable news channel One America News Network (OAN).
There, she became known as a staunch defender of Donald Trump, also claiming that he had allegedly won the 2020 election.
She left the TV channel in 2022 to join Trump's next presidential campaign.
Most information regarding Trump's relationship with Harp comes from anonymous sources, mentioned in books by journalists such as Maggie Haberman, Jonathan Swan, or Michael Wolff. Almost nothing is known about Natalie Harp's personal life.
Her brother, Preston Harp, explained his sister's unusual devotion to Trump in a CNN interview by saying that the current president embodies everything their mother taught them to respect in life.
“That’s why I think, honestly, her fascination with Trump comes from there,” Preston Harp said.
He added that Harp had been obsessed with the idea of working in the White House since she was young and had written letters to previous presidents, including George W. Bush during the Iraq War.
In a CNN interview, Harp's brother said that her “dream finally came true” when she got into the White House, and that his sister was “Trump’s biggest supporter, so he probably likes her.”
“She’s beautiful, she has a good character. She thinks he saved her life, so a person for whom such gratitude is felt must feel very good about it,” he said.
Harp's official position at the White House is Executive Assistant to the President, a role not typically high-level, involving managing logistics, scheduling, and communication flow.
However, it appears Harp has given this role new meaning, and her authority is significantly higher than that of her predecessors, such as Madeleine Westerhout in Trump's first administration.
What Influence Does Natalie Harp Have on Trump?
When CNN reporter Kristen Holmes asked Trump this week about Ossoff’s comments, the US president lashed out at her with criticism. “You’re being very disrespectful… Fake news, you’re fake news […] You’re a fake journalist and you report fake news,” Trump reacted to the reporter’s question.
The White House later published a video recording of Trump’s conversation with the journalist on its official X page, accusing her of using a “cheap” and crude tactic in her work.
“One day your children will learn about your disgusting and inhumane question. They will be uncomfortable and ashamed to see a parent display such heartlessness,” another post addressed to Holmes stated.
Trump's aide, Natalie Harp, is almost inseparable from President Donald Trump during his second term.
Reporters at the White House often see her just steps away from Trump in the Oval Office or aboard Air Force One during many of his domestic and international trips.
“She’s always there. Literally always,” a source close to the White House told the BBC.
Among those close to the White House and press representatives, she is often called a "living printer," as she is frequently seen with a portable printer, which she needs to print articles and social media posts for Trump on paper — because he prefers to read publications on paper.
This means that Harp likely has significant opportunities to control exactly what information and messages Trump receives, notes another source familiar with White House operations.
Other anonymous sources described her to American media as the president's "gatekeeper" and "favorite toy."
Harp also acts as a kind of social media secretary for Trump: she posts messages on his Truth Social account on his behalf.
In one video that widely circulated on social media after Ossoff’s comments, Harp is captured typing text for social media at Trump’s dictation, as he watches Kamala Harris’s 2024 speech.
Amid recent attention on Harp, the White House stated that she is a “trusted and valuable” member of the team, though Trump himself has rarely spoken about her on camera.
Ossoff was one of many Trump critics who noted that Harp was reportedly on board the plane on which the president departed from Turkey after the US allegedly received intelligence about a threat from Iran.
When journalist Maggie Haberman, who has written extensively and continues to write about Trump's presidency, was asked during an interview why Trump took Harp with him on "Aircraft Two" when departing from Turkey on a secret flight, she replied: "Because for him, if one can put it this way, she's like a pacifier, like a favorite warm blanket, a favorite toy — in short, something that creates a feeling of comfort and peace."
Haberman and Jonathan Swan reported in a 2024 New York Times publication that Harp allegedly wrote in a letter to Trump: "You are everything that matters to me."
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