Trump gives $45,000 holiday gifts to White House aides

Published: 09 September 2026.The English Chronicle Desk. The English Chronicle Online.

US President Donald Trump gave substantial cash holiday gifts to four White House aides, including $45,000 payments to executive assistant Natalie Harp, communications adviser Margo Martin and deputy director of Oval Office operations Chamberlain Harris, according to financial disclosure forms released by the administration.

The disclosures provide a rare glimpse into the personal financial benefits received by senior figures working around the president. The documents show that White House aides who earn government salaries received significant gifts from Trump, with the payments described by a White House official as part of the president’s longstanding practice of giving Christmas gifts to people in his orbit.

Harp, Martin and Harris each received $45,000 from Trump, while Walt Nauta, the director of Oval Office operations, received $20,000. The gifts were reported in the annual financial disclosure forms filed by the four staff members and published by the administration last week.

The value of the gifts is particularly notable when compared with the recipients’ government salaries. Harp, Martin and Harris each earn $150,000 a year, meaning their reported gifts from Trump amounted to 30% of their annual government salaries. Nauta receives an annual salary of $175,000 and received a $20,000 gift.

A White House official told the Associated Press that Trump has a longstanding tradition of giving Christmas gifts to people around him. The official said this practice has included employees and aides during Trump’s time in government as well as during his years in the private sector.

The official also said the cash gifts were not connected to the recipients’ official government responsibilities. According to the administration, the payments were therefore permissible under applicable legal and ethical rules.

The disclosures were initially reported by the Washington Post before attracting wider attention.

Natalie Harp is among the aides who have become particularly visible around Trump. She is frequently seen accompanying the president and is known for carrying a portable printer.

Harp has reportedly used the printer to produce favourable media coverage and social media posts for Trump. The president is known to prefer reading important material on paper rather than viewing it digitally, making Harp’s role a distinctive feature of the president’s working environment.

Her close presence around Trump has also made her a prominent figure among the president’s staff. She has been the subject of increased public attention in recent months, particularly as the White House continues to rely heavily on aides who manage the president’s communications and daily activities.

Margo Martin has also worked with Trump for several years. Her career with the president began during his first administration, when she served as a White House press assistant.

Following Trump’s defeat by Joe Biden in the 2020 presidential election, Martin moved to Palm Beach, Florida, where she helped manage Trump’s media operations. She subsequently returned to Washington when Trump won the 2024 presidential election and began his second administration.

Her $45,000 gift from Trump was therefore made against the backdrop of a long professional association with the president.

Chamberlain Harris, another recipient of the $45,000 payment, has also taken on responsibilities beyond his White House role. Earlier this year, Trump appointed Harris to the US Commission of Fine Arts.

The commission has oversight responsibilities connected to federal projects involving architecture and design, including the president’s plans for a White House ballroom.

The appointment has placed Harris in a position of relevance to one of the Trump administration’s high-profile building projects. His receipt of the cash gift, however, was reported as a personal holiday gift rather than compensation connected to his government duties.

Walt Nauta received the smallest of the four reported gifts, although the $20,000 payment still represents a significant amount compared with his government salary.

Nauta previously worked as a valet for Trump and later became director of Oval Office operations. He has remained a trusted figure within Trump’s inner circle.

His name has also appeared in connection with the federal investigation into classified documents that Trump retained after leaving the White House following his first term.

In 2023, Nauta and Carlos De Oliveira, a property manager at Trump’s Mar-a-Lago resort, were charged alongside Trump in connection with an alleged conspiracy to obstruct the FBI investigation into the classified documents.

The charges were dismissed in 2024.

The disclosure of the holiday gifts comes amid continuing scrutiny of Trump’s relationship with his political and professional inner circle. The financial forms offer information about payments, assets and other financial interests involving government officials and are intended to provide transparency about potential conflicts of interest.

The White House has sought to distinguish the gifts from the recipients’ official government responsibilities. Its explanation is that Trump has made similar personal gifts over many years and that the payments do not represent compensation for government work.

The administration has not said whether other White House employees received comparable gifts. The official who spoke to the Associated Press did not provide details about whether additional staff members were given cash during the holiday period.

The lack of information about other possible recipients means the four disclosed payments provide only a partial picture of Trump’s holiday-giving practices among his current White House staff.

Nevertheless, the amounts reported in the disclosures stand out because of their size. Three aides received $45,000 each, while another received $20,000. Collectively, the four disclosed gifts total $155,000.

For Harp, Martin and Harris, the $45,000 payments represent nearly one-third of their annual federal salaries. Nauta’s $20,000 gift represents more than one-tenth of his yearly government compensation.

The financial disclosures also highlight the unusually close relationship between Trump and several of the aides who work around him on a daily basis. Harp and Martin, in particular, have maintained prominent roles within the president’s political and communications operation, while Harris and Nauta have responsibilities linked directly to the Oval Office.

Trump’s practice of giving gifts to people in his orbit predates his return to the White House. The administration says he has followed the practice during both his business career and his political life.

The explanation is likely to remain relevant as ethics questions surrounding the financial relationships between senior government officials and the president continue to attract public attention.

Federal financial disclosure rules require officials to report certain gifts and financial interests, allowing the public to examine potential relationships that could raise questions about government decision-making. In this case, the recipients reported the payments in their annual disclosures.

The White House maintains that the gifts were personal and unrelated to government duties. No allegation of wrongdoing has been made against the recipients in connection with the payments.

For now, the disclosures simply document an unusual financial relationship between a president and members of his inner circle. The amounts involved, however, are large enough to draw attention, particularly because several recipients are relatively highly paid government employees.

The $155,000 in disclosed holiday gifts illustrates the considerable personal generosity Trump has shown toward some of his closest aides while also providing another insight into the relationships surrounding the president as he continues his second term.