Trump gave $45,000 cash gifts to three White House aides; $20,000 to fourth

President Trump gave cash gifts totaling $155,000 to four White House aides in late 2025 or early 2026, according to their annual financial disclosure forms published by the administration last week and first reported by The Washington Post on September 8, 2026. The gifts were labeled in the disclosures as "cash gift for holidays." Natalie Harp, executive assistant to the president, received $45,000. Margo Martin, a communications adviser, and Chamberlain Harris, deputy director of Oval Office operations, each received $45,000. Walt Nauta, director of Oval Office operations, received $20,000. Harp, Martin, and Harris each earn $150,000 annually, making the $45,000 gifts equivalent to 30 percent of their salaries. Nauta earns $175,000 a year. A White House official 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 also said the gifts "have nothing to do with any of these individuals' official government duties, and, therefore, are entirely permissible under relevant legal and ethical standards." The White House did not clarify whether any other staffers received similar gifts or what the historical range of such gift-giving has been. Harp, 35, is frequently seen at Trump's side and is known for carrying a portable printer to print favorable media coverage and social media posts for the president, who prefers reading important information on paper. During the 2024 presidential campaign, the New York Times reported she was known as the "human printer." Harp started at the White House as a presidential appointee when Trump took office in January 2025. According to the book "Regime Change" by New York Times journalists Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan, Trump remarked to staffers about Harp: "All of you will go off and make money. She'll never leave me." Sen. Jon Ossoff said at a rally last month that Trump would rather "build his ballroom and travel with Natalie" than be president. Martin, 31, is a special assistant and communications adviser in the press office. She has been working for Trump since his first term, served as a press assistant at the White House during that time, continued to work for him in Palm Beach after he left office, and returned with him to the White House following his 2024 victory. She is a key member of the communications department who posts curated videos of Trump to social media. Harris, 26, serves as deputy director of Oval Office Operations. He previously worked in the White House Office of Administration and as Receptionist of the United States in the final months of Trump's first term, then continued as Trump's executive assistant when he was out of office. Trump appointed Harris to the U.S. Commission of Fine Arts earlier this year. The Commission of Fine Arts is an independent federal agency responsible for reviewing Washington-based construction projects, including the White House Ballroom and a 250-foot triumphal arch that Trump has proposed. Nauta, 43, is a Navy veteran who served as Trump's "body man" and valet in the first administration and continued to work for him in Florida between terms. Federal law bars employees from receiving outside compensation for their services as an officer of the government.