The Trump administration has criticized liberal journalist Aaron Rupar, labeling him a "sick, deluded freak" after he posted about White House executive assistant Natalie Harp accompanying President Donald Trump on his trip to Ireland. The posts by Rupar, who has a recurring #TravelWithNatalie hashtag, continued weeks of scrutiny surrounding the 35-year-old aide.
Rupar's recent post, which highlighted Harp on the Ireland trip with the caption "Look who made the trip to Ireland!", drew a direct response from the White House-run Rapid Response 47 account. The account stated, "President Trump does, in fact, travel with staff. Aaron, on the other hand, is a sick, deluded freak (in his 40s) who sits behind a keyboard and posts creepy things like this."
Rupar responded on X, formerly Twitter, stating, "The White House-run Rapid Response 47 account is now attacking me for [checks notes] being in my 40s."
NewsBusters Executive Editor Tim Graham told Fox News Digital that Rupar's continued focus on Harp's travel was a deliberate attempt to leverage controversy. "Rupar knows he is trolling for the Trump haters. The whole 'travels with Natalie' line is toying with the original Ossoff affair smear," Graham said.
The attention on Harp began after Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia mentioned her by name during a campaign speech. Conservatives interpreted Ossoff's remarks as implying an inappropriate relationship between Trump and Harp, an interpretation Ossoff later denied. Ossoff had accused Trump of being more interested in personal pursuits than presidential duties, stating, "He doesn’t want to do the job. He wants to build his ballroom and travel with Natalie on their apparently defenseless flying palace gifted by the emir of Qatar."
Ossoff later addressed the remarks on MS Now with Jen Psaki, denying any suggestion of an affair. He characterized his reference as being about "the advisors surrounding Trump," and noted that he had heard the aide referred to as Trump's "security blanket."
Following Ossoff's initial comments, the White House defended Harp. White House spokesperson Davis Ingle stated, "Natalie Harp is one of the most loyal and hardest working aides on President Trump's team. Jon Ossoff is a cringeworthy, feminine theatre kid cosplaying as Barack Obama. Nobody gives a s--- what this lightweight loser says."
Media coverage of Harp intensified after Ossoff's remarks. Reports indicated that CNN and MS NOW had mentioned Harp hundreds of times in the days following Ossoff's speech. By August 19, CNN alone had mentioned her at least 132 times.
Graham commented on the media coverage, suggesting it failed to address the "fundamental question" of why Harp's routine presence alongside the president had become a significant news story.