President Donald Trump provided holiday gifts totaling $155,000 to four White House aides, according to personal financial disclosures from the staff members recently published by the White House. The gifts were given in addition to their annual salaries.
Margo Martin, a communications advisor, and Chamberlain Harris, deputy director of Oval Office operations, each received $45,000 cash gifts for the holidays. Natalie Harp, the president's executive assistant, also received a $45,000 holiday cash gift. Walt Nauta, director of Oval Office operations and a longtime ally, received $20,000.
A White House official stated that the president has a longstanding practice of giving holiday gifts to individuals in his orbit, including employees and aides. The official emphasized that these gifts are personal and unrelated to any official government duties, making them permissible under legal and ethical standards.
Harp, who is frequently seen with the president, has drawn scrutiny from some Democrats. Senator Jon Ossoff of Georgia has previously mentioned Harp in connection with Trump's travel plans. Martin has been a staffer for Trump since his first administration and joined his 2024 campaign, often sharing behind-the-scenes content. Harris also served in the first Trump administration and returned to Washington for the second term, later being appointed to the Commission of Fine Arts.
Nauta, who served as Trump's valet during his first term, was indicted alongside Trump in the special counsel investigation into the handling of classified information.
The financial disclosures describe the gifts as being "for the holidays" and do not specify the exact dates they were given. In three instances, the gifts were associated with the president's Palm Beach address.
Trump's own financial disclosure, released in June, indicated a significant income, exceeding $2.2 billion. Separately, a White House staffer's financial activities came under scrutiny in July when ABC News reported on Gabriel Perez, Trump's teleprompter operator, who reportedly made over $100,000 on prediction markets operated by Kalshi, a platform where users can bet on whether specific words or topics are mentioned in public speeches. Perez, who earned $175,000 annually in his role, was placed on unpaid administrative leave and subsequently fired. Kalshi had alerted its regulator, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, to the activity on its "Mentions" market.