President Donald Trump cannot escape the shadow of his controversial female personal assistant.
Trump, 80, seems to love having Natalie Harp at his side. The 35-year-old former OANN host now serves in the $150,000 taxpayer-funded position of Special Assistant to the President.
Numerous reports suggest Harp’s relationship with the president goes far beyond a typical boss-and-employee dynamic. Her own words have only fueled that perception.
News outlets published Harp’s personal letters to Trump, including one striking declaration to the businessman-turned-president: “You are all that matters to me.”
Those affectionate feelings appear to be important to Trump. He reportedly said his devoted aide is the only person who loves him as much as his wife and children.
Harp has stayed so close to Trump that she was labeled his “Human Binky.” It served as the perfect slogan for critics.
During the president’s trip to Vandalia, Ohio, protesters gave him a welcome he never expected.
A photographer for the Cincinnati Enquirer snapped numerous shots of demonstrators holding anti-Trump posters at Butler High School on Oct. 3.
Several signs focused on Trump’s past association with the deceased convicted trafficker Jeffrey Epstein.
Trump and his supporters likely arrived at the midterm rally expecting attention on the president. Instead, a giant placard read, “Natalie Harp Human Binky.”
Harp may have seen the jab if she traveled in Trump’s motorcade.
Photos showed Harp exiting the Marine One helicopter back at the White House after returning from the Buckeye State.
Social media users quickly spotted the dig when photos from the scene appeared online.
“Good on Ohio,” one Threads poster wrote. A second person declared, “Omg that hilarious. Kudos to them!!” A third expressed, “Thank you for this large sign! This says it all!”
The online compliments continued when someone posted, “Perfect sign.”
That visibility could also create an awkward dynamic, particularly with Melania Trump watching another woman take a prominent place beside her husband.
“Don’t tell Melania,” said one person. Both women have kept their distance even in the same room. But Harp’s closeness has convinced some she’s eyeing the next first lady role.
Some observers believe Trump deliberately looked away from the sign. One critic joked, “He’ll be livid she’s getting more attention than him. Protest signs should be for him. He’s not sharing the spotlight.”
Harp earned the nickname “The Human Printer” due to the heavy bag she often carries, which some say contains a portable printing device to instantly share positive news stories with Trump.
The “binky” moniker was popularized by New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman. The moniker stuck after the White House staffer joined Trump during his July airport food truck escape from Turkey.
Harp can no longer avoid public scrutiny now that she has become one of the faces of Trump 2.0. The nicknames have only amplified her spotlight, which Trump won’t like.
Whether she accompanies him to a golf outing at a Trump property or a summit with other world leaders, every time the president steps outside, certain viewers will be locked in to see if his steadfast aide is nearby.
Many observers believe Harp’s bond with Trump has crossed into the obsession territory. Particularly after her estranged brother revealed details about his younger sister’s early life.
Preston Harp told CNN that their mother taught her children far-right ideology. The Nicaragua resident, who now supports leftist politics, said he believes Natalie’s fixation on the MAGA chief stems directly from that upbringing.
“I think that my sister, unfortunately, didn’t break out of that delusion that our mom raised us with, and Trump is like everything that our mom taught us to respect,” Preston, 38, stated.
He believes, “I think that’s where her infatuation for Trump comes from, honestly, because I don’t think it’s a physical attraction. Let’s get real.”
Preston later recalled that he and his sister were raised in a conservative megachurch led by a preacher accused of “deceptive and unethical” practices.
Natalie embraced that religious worldview as a teenager under Dr. David Jeremiah at San Diego County’s Shadow Mountain Community Church.
Her background helps explain some of the devotion her brother described, but her closeness to Trump has created a very different kind of attention.
Harp now remains close enough to the president that her presence has become part of the public conversation around him.
