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Letters From White House Aide Natalie Harp to Donald Trump Released in Full

The Daily Beast published letters from aide Natalie Harp to Donald Trump that reportedly drew scrutiny from the Secret Service.

Published August 21, 2026 at 9:23 AM EDT

The short answer

The Daily Beast published letters from aide Natalie Harp to Donald Trump that reportedly drew scrutiny from the Secret Service. Private letters written by White House executive assistant Natalie Harp to President Donald Trump have been published in full by The Daily Beast.

Letters From White House Aide Natalie Harp to Donald Trump Released in Full

The Facts

Who
Natalie Harp (Executive Assistant to the President), Donald Trump (President), Maggie Haberman (New York Times reporter), and Michael Wolff (Biographer).
What
Publication of personal letters from White House aide Natalie Harp to Donald Trump.
When
Thursday and Friday, August 20-21, 2026
Where
Washington, D.C.
Why
The letters, which expressed deep personal devotion, reportedly caused alarm within the Secret Service and have created tension among other White House staffers.

Timeline of what happened

Key dates and decisions, in the order they occurred.

  1. May 1, 2023

    Letters allegedly written during a trip to Scotland and Ireland

  2. January 1, 2025

    Biographer Michael Wolff works on the book 'All or Nothing'

  3. August 20, 2026

    Maggie Haberman discusses Secret Service concerns on CNN

  4. August 21, 2026

    Letters published in full by The Daily Beast

Private letters written by White House executive assistant Natalie Harp to President Donald Trump have been published in full by The Daily Beast. The letters, which were reportedly written around the time of a 2023 trip to Scotland and Ireland during Trump’s re-election campaign, include personal reflections on Harp's career, the death of her father, and her professional devotion to the president.

The documents were obtained by biographer Michael Wolff while researching his 2025 book, "All or Nothing." According to New York Times reporter Maggie Haberman, the nature of these letters previously caused concern within the Secret Service, the agency responsible for the president's protection. The White House has not independently verified the letters but has defended Harp’s performance and loyalty.

In the correspondence, Harp, 35, describes herself as "unworthy" of Trump and apologizes for perceived professional lapses, such as walking a golf course in Scotland instead of using a cart. She expressed a desire to return to the "synergy" of their previous relationship when she was a talk show host and he would call to discuss various topics. Harp also noted she was approaching "burnout" and thanked Trump for being her "Guardian and Protector."

For the public and federal workers, this situation illustrates the degree of scrutiny applied to those in close proximity to the Commander-in-Chief. A person in this role, like Harp, is described as a primary "stream of information" for the president, sitting just 10 feet away from the Oval Office. The reported unease among other West Wing staffers suggests that the personal nature of these interactions can influence the day-to-day operations and morale within the federal government's most senior administrative body.

The precedent set by this disclosure involves how private communications between aides and the president are preserved, leaked, or used by biographers. It also raises questions about the Secret Service's role in monitoring internal White House communications for security purposes. What happens next depends on potential administrative responses or further details from Michael Wolff’s book, "All or Nothing," which is scheduled for release in 2025. As of now, the White House continues to support Harp, calling her one of the "most loyal and hardest-working aides" on the team.

Summaries are written by The Plain Record to state the facts of a story plainly and without political slant. See our editorial standards, or report a correction.

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Questions readers ask

What happened: Letters From White House Aide Natalie Harp to Donald Trump Released in Full?

Publication of personal letters from White House aide Natalie Harp to Donald Trump.

Who is involved?

Natalie Harp (Executive Assistant to the President), Donald Trump (President), Maggie Haberman (New York Times reporter), and Michael Wolff (Biographer).

When did this happen?

Thursday and Friday, August 20-21, 2026

Where did this happen?

Washington, D.C.

Why does this matter?

The letters, which expressed deep personal devotion, reportedly caused alarm within the Secret Service and have created tension among other White House staffers.