Donald Trump, 80, has surrounded himself with young, extremely loyal, blond women during his second term in the White House.
He claims it like a badge of honor, tapping the likes of Pam Bondi and Karoline Leavitt, who have both left his administration.
Trump appointed Karoline Leavitt, 28, to be the youngest press secretary in American history. Right behind her is Natalie Harp, 35, one of his longtime insiders.
Leavitt returned to the White House after taking maternity leave following the birth of her second child. However, on Aug. 12, she announced her departure as Trump’s official spokesperson.
In recent months, Harp has been nearly glued to his side, showing up in spaces that Leavitte used to.
Harp was tapped to be an executive assistant to the president.
Whispers suggest she could replace Leavitt at the Press Briefing Room’s podium, though no official replacement has been named as of this writing.
Trump reportedly thinks very highly of Harp, who has been photographed traveling with him in Washington, Florida, and abroad.
Veteran political reporter Maggie Haberman says the OANN alum serves a specific purpose in the administration that requires assisting the POTUS in unconventional ways.
Haberman, 52, provided insight into Harp’s close relationship with Trump during a MS NOW appearance over the weekend.
The New York Times reporter’s segment on “Connect with Jacob Soboroff” aired on Aug. 16, just days after Leavitt announced she is leaving the West Wing.
The “Connect” conversation centered on a report that Trump’s July 2026 trip to Turkey ended with him being secretly sneaked from one airplane to another inside a catering truck.
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A purported security threat from Iran prompted the switch-up. The alleged plot supposedly involved a potential surface-to-air missile aimed at the president’s plane.
Harp and other top Trump aides joined their boss in the food container for the escape. Meanwhile, other high-ranking administration officials were left on the “decoy” Air Force One.
“I can guess why Natalie Harp, [Director of White House Oval Office Operations] Walt Nauta and [White House Deputy Chief of Staff] Dan Scavino were with him,” Haberman said.
The noted Trump biographer added, “Natalie Harp, because she is sort of his binkie, for lack of a better way of putting it, his comfort blanket.”
Haberman then suggested why Harp and Scavino were chosen for the clandestine move between aircraft. They are both heavily involved in Trump’s social media messaging.
Harp being described as an item that preschoolers used for soothing made waves online. Nauta, 44, caught heat, too.
“Natalie Harp, human binkie, and Walt Nauta, human hairspray dispenser. According to Trump, essential to our national security,” joked an X user.
Other posters on the app offered additional tongue-in-cheek reasons why Harp accompanied the commander-in-chief during his undercover getaway in Turkey.
One tweet said, “His binky… JC, he’s POTUS, not a toddler. Oh wait…” Another Trump critic posted, “She has blonde hair, brown roots, and black eyebrows…..make that make sense.”
Yahoo readers weighed in as well. Harp was slammed on the website when one person wrote, “She must be a desperate woman.”
“I guess [Melania] is ok with this?” asked another commenter, mentioning Trump’s third wife, first lady Melania Trump, who he is rarely seen with.
Others suspect, “There is even speculation that Harp could be the wild card in the race to replace departing White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. She’s also in the race to replace Melania.”
The alleged behind-the-scenes palace intrigue of the Trump family remains a hot-button topic that constantly fuels online speculation.
Harp becoming one of the most recognizable faces of Trump’s inner circle has made her a regular target of both respectable journalists and internet trolls.
Haberman teamed with Jonathan Swan to publish “Regime Change” in June 2026, which played a major role in elevating Harp to prominence.
The book revealed that White House colleagues nicknamed Harp as Trump’s “human printer.” She reportedly prints favorable news stories for him to read.
Rumors also claimed she leaves “adoring letters” for Trump in “personal spaces,” including one note that reportedly read, “You are all that matters to me.”
With her face spreading across social media and people wondering about her true connection to the president, Harp persists as Trump’s devoted deputy at his side.
It appears that wherever Trump goes, Harp tags along close behind. Even Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff made it a point to shine a spotlight on her association with the president.
“See, he doesn’t want to do the job,” Ossoff, 39, said about Trump during a campaign rally in Atlanta on Aug. 16.
The Georgia-born politician went on to say, “He wants to build his ballroom and travel with Natalie on their apparently defenseless flying palace gifted by the Emir of Qatar.”
