Trump's $135,000 holiday surprise for three White House aides revealed in new disclosures

President Donald Trump gave three of his closest White House aides $45,000 each in cash holiday gifts, according to annual financial disclosure filings submitted by the officials. Natalie Harp, Chamberlain Harris and Margo Martin each reported receiving $45,000 from Trump. The gifts totaled $135,000 and were separate from the aides’ taxpayer-funded annual salaries of $150,000. The financial disclosures list Trump as the source of each payment and describe the money as a ‘cash gift for the holidays’.

Harris identified Trump’s location as Washington, DC, while Harp and Martin listed Palm Beach, Florida. The disclosures were filed under federal government requirements governing public financial reporting by senior government officials. Each $45,000 payment represents 30% of the recipient’s annual White House salary. The three aides are among the officials who have frequent access to Trump and play prominent roles around the president.

Harp, who serves as a special assistant and executive assistant to Trump, has attracted attention for her highly visible presence around the president. She is frequently seen at Trump’s side, printing articles, social media posts and other material for him, earning her the nickname 'the human printer'. Harris serves as deputy director of Oval Office operations and as an executive assistant to the president. Trump also appointed her to the Commission of Fine Arts, a federal panel responsible for reviewing architectural and design matters in Washington.

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That appointment has become particularly notable because the commission is involved in reviewing Trump’s proposed White House ballroom, a project that has sparked legal and political controversy. Former commissioners and preservation advocates criticized Harris’ appointment and questioned whether she had the qualifications for the position. Martin, Trump’s communications adviser, also travels regularly with the president. She frequently records and publishes videos of Trump, including footage showing him dancing on a tarmac in Malaysia and interacting with visitors in the Oval Office.

The financial filings provide limited information about the circumstances surrounding the holiday payments. A White House spokesperson defended the gifts, saying, “The President 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,” a White House spokesperson said. “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.”