Federal employees are generally prohibited from receiving compensation that exceeds their government salary.
Published September 10, 2026
President Donald Trump gave tens of thousands of dollars in cash gifts to four White House aides last year, raising questions about whether he violated federal ethics rules governing compensation for public officials.
Chief of Staff Natalie Harp, communications adviser Margo Martin and Deputy Director of Oval Office Operations Chamberlain Harris each received $45,000, according to financial information released by the government last week.
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Meanwhile, Oval Office Operations Director Walt Nauta received $20,000. The money was labeled “Holiday Cash Gift.”
Federal employees are generally prohibited from receiving compensation that exceeds their government salary, raising questions about whether the payments are permissible. But the White House said the gift complied with ethics rules.
“The gifts at issue here have nothing to do with the official government duties of these individuals and are therefore completely permissible under the relevant legal and ethical standards,” White House Press Secretary Davis Ingle said in a statement.
Ingle added that President Trump has a longstanding habit of giving Christmas gifts to people in his “orbit,” both in government and in the private sector.
The $45,000 paid was about one-third of the annual salaries received by Mr. Harp, Mr. Martin, and Mr. Harris. They are paid $150,000 a year. Mr. Nauta’s annual compensation is $175,000.
Harp and Nauta are among President Trump’s closest aides and are in near-constant contact with the president, both inside the White House and while on the road.
For example, Mr. Harp helps manage Mr. Trump’s Truth Social account and is responsible for drafting social media statements, according to a person familiar with Mr. Harp’s role.
She is also known to carry around a portable printer that provides coverage to President Trump, earning her the nickname “The Human Printer.”
Her close relationship with the president has put her in the spotlight in recent months. At one midterm rally, Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff questioned Trump’s commitment to public service, citing his trip with Harp.
“He doesn’t want to do that job. He wants to build a banquet hall and travel with Natalie,” Ossoff said.
Mr. Trump has similarly strong ties with Mr. Nauta. Nauta, a former White House valet, continued to work for Trump after he lost re-election in 2020, taking on roles at the president’s Mar-a-Lago resort and political action committee.
He later returned to the White House as a member of Trump’s second administration.
But during Trump’s two terms, Nauta was co-defendant with Trump in a federal indictment accusing Republican leaders of illegally concealing classified documents from official offices.
Nauta was charged with conspiracy to conceal documents and obstruct a federal investigation. He pleaded not guilty, but the case was later dropped when Trump returned to office.
Mr. Harp and Mr. Nauta were among a small group of aides who accompanied Mr. Trump in a catering truck during his secret plane change in Turkiye in July amid reports of threats to his security.
Reporters, staff, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and others remained on the plane that was supposed to carry President Trump, in what critics are calling a “decoy flight” in preparation for an attack.
