Jimmy Kimmel has spotted a curious pattern in Donald Trump’s decision to hand huge cash gifts to three young female aides.
The late-night host dedicated part of his Wednesday night monologue to a bombshell report from The Washington Post, which revealed that Trump gave his exceptionally loyal aide and “human printer,” Natalie Harp, 35, a whopping $45,000 in cash.
Harp, who makes $150,000 a year, has come under scrutiny for her abnormally close relationship to the president, 80. The Daily Beast has revealed intimate letters that Harp has sent to the man whose side she rarely leaves.
She was one of three recipients of a gift from Trump, with Margo Martin, 31, and Chamberlain Harris, 26, both receiving an equivalent amount. Kimmel posited that the three of them have something in common.
He began: “So, Natalie wasn’t the only staffer who got a bonus. See if you notice anything that these bonuses have in common.” He then displayed images of Martin, Trump’s communications adviser, and Harris, his “current ballroom czar.”
“It’s like Charlie’s Angels in there!” Kimmel declared.
“But I do want to say, before you rush to any judgment, there’s absolutely nothing unusual about an 80-year-old billionaire president giving the three young, attractive women in his office $45,000 each,” quipped the host. “You’re the weird one for even thinking that. And shame on you!”
Kimmel further illustrated his point by displaying a photograph of Walt Nauta, the one male aide Trump also provided a cash gift to. “Walt got $20,000, which is less than $45,000. He doesn’t look great in a dress...” joked Kimmel.
The Washington Post identified Trump’s “Cash Gift for Holidays” in financial disclosures released by the White House last week.
White House spokesperson Davis Ingle told the publication that the gifts were legal.
“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,” he 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.”
The gifts have alarmed ethics experts, and the Post deemed Trump’s gestures unprecedented.
The news of Trump’s bonus for Harp comes after her seeming closeness to the president grabbed national attention.
Like Harp, Martin also shows a devotion to the president, posting messages like “There will never be another like him” on social media, accompanying a video of the president doing his signature dance on stage.
Harp and Nauta were both amongst the aides on Trump’s secret flight out of Turkey in July. The president left behind top administration officials like Stephen Miller and Marco Rubio in order to escape an alleged assassination attempt.
In her letters to the president, Harp made her feelings clear. “You are all that matters to me,” she wrote in 2023. “Thank you for being my Guardian and Protector in this Life.”
