Financial disclosures show that President Trump gave Natalie Harp a $45,000 cash payment listed as a “cash gift for the holidays,” the filings and reporting show, making it roughly one-third of her White House salary and drawing scrutiny from ethics experts.
The disclosures, reported by POLITICO and detailed on NPR, list Natalie Harp as one of three aides who each reported receiving $45,000 from Mr. Trump; the filings identify him as the source and describe the sums as holiday cash gifts.
POLITICO’s reporting said the three payments totaled $135,000 and came on top of each aide’s roughly $150,000 taxpayer-funded annual salary, and that the disclosures named Trump as the payor and described the entries as “cash gift for the holidays.”
Reporting by NPR noted ethics lawyers flagged the size of the payments as unusual because each $45,000 figure amounts to about 30 percent of a White House aide’s salary, and experts said such outside supplemental income can raise legal and ethical concerns for federal employees.
The filings also show small location differences: POLITICO reported that Chamberlain Harris listed Washington, D.C., as the source location while Harp and Margo Martin listed Palm Beach, Florida. The disclosures were filed under the federal government’s public financial disclosure rules.
POLITICO quoted a White House spokesperson saying, “The gifts at issue here have nothing to do with any of these individuals’ official government duties, and, therefore, are entirely permissible under relevant legal and ethical standards.” NPR reported the filings and interviews with Washington Post reporters who first flagged the payments.
The ORIGINAL_KEYWORD appears in the reporting as reporters and filings identified Natalie Harp by name and recorded the $45,000 amount and the “cash gift” label; watchdog groups have since asked federal ethics authorities to review the disclosures.
How the payments were funded was not clear from the filings. NPR said the disclosures list Donald J. Trump as the source, but the records do not show whether the money came from personal funds or another channel.
For readers tracking related disclosures, POLITICO’s coverage placed the Harp payment alongside payments to Chamberlain Harris and Margo Martin; our site previously reported on Chamberlain Harris receiving $45,000 in a related post and readers may find that background useful.
As the story develops, ethics filings and watchdog complaints may yield more detail about timing, source and any agency review.
Sources
- POLITICO — reported the $45,000 gifts to Natalie Harp and two other aides, described the filings and quoted a White House spokesperson.
- NPR — summarized the disclosures, interviewed The Washington Post reporter who broke the story, and reported ethics experts’ concerns about the size of the payments.
