Trump reports giving cash holiday gifts to four White House aides
Financial disclosures show President Donald Trump gave cash gifts ranging from $20,000 to $45,000 to four senior White House staff members during the holidays.
President Donald Trump provided cash holiday gifts to four senior White House aides, according to financial disclosure forms released by the administration. Each of executive assistant Natalie Harp, communications adviser Margo Martin and deputy director of Oval Office operations Chamberlain Harris received $45,000, while director of Oval Office operations Walt Nauta was given $20,000. The aides earn annual salaries of $150,000 (Harp, Martin, Harris) and $175,000 (Nauta), as reported in the White House salary disclosure to Congress.
"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 private sector," said a White House official who requested anonymity and was not authorized to comment publicly.
The official added that the cash gifts were unrelated to the recipients' official duties and therefore comply with applicable legal and ethical standards. The Washington Post first reported the disclosures earlier this week.
Harp is noted for frequently accompanying the president and for using a portable printer to provide printed media coverage. Martin, who began as a press assistant during Trump’s first term, continued to work for him after the 2020 election and returned to the White House following his 2024 victory. Harris was appointed earlier this year to the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts, which oversees the White House ballroom project. Nauta, a former valet to Trump, faced charges in 2023 related to an alleged obstruction of an FBI investigation into classified documents, but those charges were dismissed in 2024.