A former White House official is pushing back against renewed chatter about Donald Trump’s working relationship with longtime aide Natalie Harp, calling the criticism “creepy.”
Abigail Jackson, who recently stepped down as deputy to Karoline Leavitt, said Harp is frequently seen with the president for a simple reason: it is part of her job.
Harp, 35, has remained among Trump’s most trusted staffers for years and has earned the nickname “human printer” because she routinely carries stacks of news clippings and articles for him to review.
Her proximity to Trump has come under fresh scrutiny after Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff mocked the pair’s closeness during a campaign-style rally in Georgia on Saturday.
Ossoff told the crowd that the president “doesn’t want to do the job,” adding that Trump instead wants to “build his ballroom and travel with Natalie on their apparently defenseless flying palace gifted by the emir of Qatar.”
Jackson has now responded directly to Ossoff, a prominent Democratic figure who has been floated as a potential 2028 presidential contender.
“Women shouldn’t have to worry about creeps like Ossoff attacking them because they’re professionally successful,” Jackson wrote on X.
“If you’re a female staffer working at a senior level you’re going to be around your boss. A lot. You’re going to travel with them and staff them. That’s the JOB,” she added.
Donald Trump, right, greets Natalie Harp, left, at the Faith & Freedom Coalition conference in Washington, June 2019
Abigail Jackson, who quit as Karoline Leavitt’s deputy earlier this month, said Harp spends ‘a lot’ of time with the president because that is her job
Trump and aide Natalie Harp exit Marine One on the Ellipse near the White House on August 16
Trump’s relationship with Harp is back in the limelight after he chose to save her over his own cabinet secretaries amid an Iranian assassination threat following the NATO summit in Turkey last month.
Harp was among a handful of aides including Trump’s former caddy Dan Scavino who switched planes with him on the tarmac in Ankara.
Israeli intelligence had warned of an impending Iranian attack on Air Force One.
Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent were left on the plane with dozens of journalists.
The White House press machinery has swung violently against Harp’s critics in recent days as the headlines have increased.
Trump himself angrily shouted ‘quiet’ at a female CNN reporter after she asked about his relationship Harp in the Oval Office on Monday.
CNN’s Kristen Holmes asked Trump for his response to Ossoff’s speech, to which the president replied that the Democratic senator is a ‘Pee-wee Herman lookalike.’
Holmes attempted to follow up with a question about South Korea before Trump had finished speaking, sending him into a tailspin.
Donald Trump shouted ‘quiet’ at a female CNN reporter after she asked about his relationship with his 35-year-old aide Natalie Harp in the Oval Office on Monday
Harp listens as Trump announces Dulles International Airport renovations in the Oval Office on July 29
‘Quiet. Quiet. Quiet!’ Trump shouted at Holmes.
‘You’re a loud, boisterous person. You’re fake news,’ Trump added as he repeatedly told Holmes ‘be quiet’ while she battled to get her question across.
Outgoing White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt appeared furious and mouthed something to a colleague after Holmes’ question.
The official White House social media account and its proxies rounded on Holmes in highly personal language after she asked about Harp.
‘Someday, your children will come across your disgusting and inhumane question,’ said the official Rapid Response 47 account. ‘They will be sickened and embarrassed to have a parent be so callous and vindictive. It’s quite troubling.’
The White House branded Holmes ‘a disgraceful, humiliating embarrassment to her alleged profession.’
Holmes is a Senior White House Correspondent at CNN where she has worked for more than 14 years. The Daily Mail has contacted Holmes for comment.
Harp is never far from the President and is trusted with taking dictation on the market-moving posts he makes to his Truth Social account, where he often announces major decisions such as strikes on Iran or tariffs on foreign countries.
She once ran behind his golf cart while he was playing in Scotland to keep him up to date with the latest news headlines.
Harp is Trump’s ‘connective tissue’, sources told Our News Outlet, with some pointing out that she has more access than even his chief of staff Susie Wiles .
Harp famously wrote, ‘You’re all that matters to me,’ in a letter to Trump published by the New York Times in 2024.
