Here’s Everything I Know About Natalie Harp: Wolff | Inside Trump's Head

During the 2024 campaign, people began. to talk to me because they were specifically worried. about this woman, Natalie Harp, who had come into the campaign. She was assuming more and more authority in the campaign. There was a joke than people would say, oh, oh, you know, ask the chief of staff, meaning ask asking Natalie. Later in the campaign, it was no longer a joke. She has worked to put herself into the position.

that she is the woman closest to Donald Trump. So it's really Natalie versus Melania? Yes. And even people within the white House say that. Natalie was one of the one of the people who was. who argued for the ballroom and getting rid of the East. wing. Michael. Joanna, I'm so excited to talk to you today. because there is one name on everybody's lips,

Natalie Harp. We're giving over an entire episode to what Michael knows about Natalie Harp. because you started writing about her three years ago. Is it three years ago now? It's three years ago. It's three years ago. But first, don't forget. Please subscribe to The Daily Beast. wherever you receive our notifications, our podcast, whatever. We are independent media and we appreciate your support.

Suppress the subscription button and ring the bell and ring the bell. Press the bell so you're notified when we drop into your YouTube. or your Spotify or your Apple inboxes. So Michael, today we're going to talk about what is the impact of Natalie Harp. How do his staff and I'm very curious about. Susie Wales's point of view on Natalie Harp. How did she manage to end up in a position where she is with him.

more than anybody else? Where you say she is the second most important person in the white House, and where do we go from here? And and the flight manifests that you were given which show. that she was on every flight during the only person? The only person who was on every flight with. the then candidate, Donald Trump. So this is a woman who has been hiding in plain sight.

And only now is she really getting the attention. that you were trying to give her three years ago. And I think you just have to focus on this. An extraordinary story. How did this happen? Who is this person and and what are the implications. of this young woman having so much power. and being in such proximity to the president of the United States? Constant proximity.

You wrote extensively about Natalie. Harp in your book, All or Nothing. Why? Why did she. Why did she? Well, she's I mean, she's one of the central characters in In All or Nothing. I mean, and she's a central character because. Because she's inexplicable. I mean, how this person came to assume. such influence in power in the Trump campaign. and then in the white House was, I felt, a remarkable story.

But I know the story. And because others around Trump found it. inexplicable, remarkable, inexplicable, and. Peril dangerous. I mean, they were dangerous. They were were worried that that a. that this person, Natalie Harp, was then 30 years old. 2930. No background whatsoever.

had came to came to take more. and more and more of the candidate than candidate Trump's. attention and become more and more central to what he knew, what he believed, his the opinions that he had at any given moment. She she and she she was, she was. and became more and more his front face to. to the Republican Party, to members of Congress, to the press.

She was the most important person in his political life, and I think was then gradually becoming. the most important person in his personal life also. Okay, so All or Nothing is Michael's fourth. book on the Trumps, this being Michael Wolff. I'm Joanna Coles of The Daily Beast, by the way. Just in case you've joined us. And what am I doing here? What's happening today?

We're going to focus on Natalie Harp, who's emerging as this incredibly. important person in the Trump orbit, and also the impact on on the first lady. But let's talk about the origin story of Natalie Harp. Where did she come from and how did you start? I mean, I know you were slipped bits of information about her. for people who haven't written a book, who haven't done the extensive. reporting you have, you might want to just explain.

a little bit about how she came to your attention. And also, we've got one of your one of her letters. that we're going to read out that was in that was in all or nothing. So one of the things that happens when you're doing these, these kind of books, books about. Well, in this. case, obviously about about Donald Trump running. for president of the United States, the former president who then became. the future president is what is the reason that that people around him talk to you?

What is the reason that they share information and continue. to share it and continue? And I mean, there are there are a lot of reasons. I'm one of the reasons I've known many of these people over ten years now. So we have a relationship. We are virtually, virtually friends. We are involved in this story together. But specifically during the 2024 campaign, people. began to talk to me because they were were specifically worried.

about this woman, Natalie Harp, who had come into the campaign. No one knew exactly what she was doing there. No one knew why she was doing there, but she. but she was assuming more and more authority in the campaign. And and this was. both a worry and an annoyance to many people. And so that's one of the motivations for people to speak to reporters.

They want to tell you there's a story here. There's there's they're worried about the candidate. They're worried about their own jobs. They're worried even sometimes about the country. And and they seek out people to tell this story. And in my case, because I was around so often, I was certainly. one of the people that they sought out to tell this weird story. of this young woman who had become so central to the campaign.

So how did she come onto Donald Trump's radar? You know, a series, and it's instructive. So she was she had a position, an occasional on air position. at one of the conservative networks, the, the, the one America, the least successful conservative television network. And,

and through. that, she had come to know some people in the Trump orbit. And then she was enormously persistent, persistent in, in, in, in going after their attention, then getting, getting them to introduce her to other people. She had a story in which she had cancer and she came. and it was always billed as, as, as a, you know, very, very serious, a serious cancer.

that would likely kill her. It was a bone cancer, right? Yes. I mean, there's a this this story has a lot of holes. So there's no real specificity here. She then maintained that she had been cured of this cancer because in the first. in the first administration, there was a Trump supported bill. that gave greater access to experimental treatments. So she she maintained that because. because of those access to those treatments, her cancer was cured.

This then made her this claim. Trump saved my life. And that was very specifically Trump saved my life, gave her a speaking birth. during the Republican convention in 2020. And this was this was during Covid, you might remember. So it was this was a the virtual convention. But but there she was given television. time to say Donald Trump saved my life.

This then gave her more access to the. to the Trump world and in fact got her a job in. When Trump went to Mar-A-Lago, she became. this would be 2021, maybe early 2022. One of you know, in political campaigns and in political circles, there's there's just the.

always a range of whatever. interns go fetch it people, people doing errands, volunteers, basically. And that's what she became, a Go Fetchit girl. From there, she became what is also called. in, in campaign terminology, a body person. And the body person is the person is the person who is in. tending the candidates or the or the politicians needs at any point.

Get me a cup of coffee. Here's my bag. You know, my a. politician can't do these things like anyone else I do not know. But this is this is part of political convention. Then then she. she found herself in this, in this, this interesting position. in which Trump would play golf every morning.

Another exceptional thing that during the 2024 campaign, which began in kind of. formally in 2022, Trump played golf every morning. This is this extraordinary one of the most difficult jobs. One of the most difficult things you can do is run for president. It's the most consumed, time consuming. You're always on the road. It is the thing that I think probably most disqualifies.

most people from being the president, because you could not you couldn't. just can't put up with that schedule except for Trump, who. who just played golf through the whole campaign, although he did have better name recognition than anybody else. Well, I mean, it was almost obviously he didn't have to do anything. He won exactly. But never nevertheless. But so he's on the golf course. And in order to keep touch with the campaign and whatever, he.

he would have someone follow him. Oh, this is this is I mean, it's it's. not as if he could have, you know, a phone and look at his phone. He needed someone to follow him with a portable printer to print out. emails, texts, articles. And he would read them. He would stop at a hole to play a hole, you know, playing,

you know, the ninth hole. And then he would be given this stack of papers, this person, the the the person who carried the printer was Natalie Harp. That's. So that's where she found herself into the most access, the most access she could have with Donald Trump. And it proved to be key access because all of his information, everything that Donald Trump new came from Natalie Harp's printer. So she's printing him out.

Texts, supportive texts from people, motivational statements, positive news, positive poll numbers, anything negative about DeSantis, who is who he was running against. So she's like a sort of good luck charm. She's just running around after him, spewing good news now. Only good. There was there was. Yes. No. And. Trump was. famous during the first administration for.

for never carrying paper. He didn't have papers. Trump didn't read and suddenly read. And we know that he doesn't email and he doesn't text. Right. So suddenly, though, during the 2024 campaign, he suddenly had all these papers and would prefer I have to do my papers. I have to and everybody was going, what is he talking about? And this turned out to be what. the, the the material supplied to him by Natalie.

Now, there was one occasion on the plane where, I don't know, the plane stopped short or there was turbulence something, and the papers went off the desk, so they were all over the floor. So everybody, all the staffers got a got. a, got a chance to see all this, this stuff. Well, they all got down on the floor to help. collect the papers because they wanted to read the papers. Right. And and it turned out to be mostly kind of. fan art.

fan of, you know, you know, people doing little pictures of Trump, sort of Trump on top of the Empire State Building. Right? So this is the kind of stuff that she would. that she would funnel him stuff to all feel good stuff. So or and then she figured out because, I mean, Natalie Harp happens to be very come. from a very conservative right wing evangelical background. So then she would feed him also stuff that would push his buttons,

in other words. In other words, if she wanted him, if she wanted him to attack someone, she would then know the kinds of things, the kinds of the kinds of tweets. or the kinds of articles to funnel him that would get him hot under the collar. And then he would, he would he would make some post about somebody now. and then she took over that job to.

So she became the person who did the posts, pushing out the person, the guy who had who had for, for a long period of time. done those posts. A guy by the name of Dan Scavino was the kind of social media person, Dan Scavino, by the way, who started, you know, his. his trajectory was as a caddie at the golf club. So he worked himself. So also no political background? No all. And it's always important to remember that the retainers.

around Trump are don't have a political background. Okay. So the other thing that Natalie Harp has. that Dan Scavino doesn't have is she looks a specific way. I mean, this is a man, Donald Trump, who owns Miss Universe. He had a Trump modeling agency. He loved hanging out with women, with Jeffrey Epstein, his great friend, until they had their sort of breaking up. So she for those of you who are listening to this. and can't see the pictures that we're showing and who haven't seen.

what she looks like, she's a very specific kind of trope. She has blond hair, she's very slim. She's sort of pretty. She's a sort of gives off a trad wife vibe. Is that fair? She looks like like like Trump girls. She looks like Trump girls are. I'm going to read you a section from All or Nothing. This was one of Trump's set. pieces, always to be surrounded by attractive women who worked for him.

He referred to them as Charlie's Angels. His relationship with them was of unclear and flirtatious. Eleanor Harbor, who we've talked about extensively, and Lindsey. Halligan and Natalie Harp were part of the great entourage. that accompanied him to the spring NCAA wrestling championship. Trump's subject of discourse at the NCAA event was which wrestlers. the ladies with him found most attractive. Everybody seemed happy to. play along, critiquing the various bodies, rating them as their type or not.

But Natalie couldn't be moved. Trump kept pressing her, trying to make her obvious point. even more obvious to everyone listening in with disbelief and embarrassment. Oh, none of them. None of them, sir. I didn't find any of them attractive or anything worth looking at. Which was to say, I only have eyes for you. It's very moving story, Michael. Very moving. She could have had a wrestler and instead she chose Donald Trump.

You know, people in the campaign would, would, would know constantly the way she looked at Trump. And this was this became this was so much. and so much almost of a kind of trope that they would surreptitiously. take pictures of her staring at, at, at Trump, particularly on the plane, and then pass them to me. And,

I mean, it was. hopefully you have some of those pictures I do good, I do. So maybe we can come back and revisit new pictures on Thursday. So. So Natalie has basically become his social media person. She's also following him around, giving him messages of good luck. and hope and cheer from fans now. And she is always with him.

That most important rule in politics access. she understands to a to. to a weird degree. So at some point I was I was past. and I was past them for this precise reason. that I was past the manifests, the manifests of. of the plane Trump force one that. that that ferried the the candidate and the campaign.

team around the country during the 2024 campaign. And there is only one person through all of these, you know, 100, 100 plus, probably close to 150 plane plane trips. And the manifest there, right, that is on all of the flights and that's. Natalie and and on the manifest also, you can see where the people sit.

And she's always sitting right behind Donald Trump. It's worth pointing out that in all of these flights, Melania is only on one flight and she's being dropped off somewhere else. She's hitching a ride. What is the impact on the first marriage? Why isn't Melania around more? She said. Last time we saw her, she was at the FIFA World Cup final. Before that, the only time we'd seen her in July was for the July 4th celebrations.

She's de facto left the stage. And Natalie, as you say, was on every single manifest. And she is, she is and she is now in the white House, certainly, hands down, the person who spends the most time with the president of the United States. So she's his sort of emotional chief of staff. I mean, she she manages access to all, all of that. But I think I think you go beyond and there was during the campaign,

early in the campaign, there was a joke and people would say, oh, oh, you know, asked the chief of staff, meaning ask asking Natalie. Later in the campaign, it was no longer a joke. And then in that that led to incredible tensions. within the campaign, which we should talk about, doesn't appear. to have any other life whatsoever apart from being right by Donald Trump's side. We know that she has left him. Notes. And you have a note in all or Nothing, which I want to read out.

She leaves him little post-it notes in the personal spaces. I want to go back, because I think that there's a progression in terms of. in terms of understanding this, but but also the nature. Somebody in in the president's. close, close circle described the Natalie's relationship. to the president as a Christian devotional relationship. Now, I'm not sure exactly what that means, but I think it goes it really goes into trad wife territory.

Well, and also, she was the one that posted a picture of him as Jesus and him as healer. Okay, so we have a note here that she sent him that you you. print in full as far as I am. Let me just set the context of this, this note. She she would print out whatever the material, the emails, the text, the articles for Trump in this, in these printouts, she would slip.

letters of her own notes, love, love letters, and in several of the. of these of these letters were then passed to me by people in the campaign. Okay. So I'm going to I'm going to read one of the letters, all right. Just to give it just to set it up. Letters had started to surface from Natalie to Trump, passed around. by his political and legal teams with bewilderment and concern. and incredulity, portraying a relationship of an imagined,

alarming intimacy or one of genuinely strange submissiveness. There's your trad wife thing. She slipped them into the stack of papers with which she was constantly. supplying him. Okay, here's the letter. After going through all this self-analysis, my conclusion. I need to reunite my past self with my current into a better version. Who will make you proud and please, when I fail, just move. She's writing the man who has been the president of the United States,

who is trying again to be the president of the United States, who will be the president of the United States. Okay. And please, when I fail, will you tell me. you have the absolute right to cuss me out if need be, when I deserve it? Because no one knows or cares about me more? Okay, so she's obviously getting some kind of reciprocation from him. Thank you for always being there for me. I'll never forget when you made that promise to me after losing my dad,

and I know how happy he is right now that I did get to go to Scotland. and Ireland, as he always wanted that for me to modify a classic, I could not have parted with you to anyone less. And I will add it is. I who is unworthy always. Natalie P.S. my hands looked worse in Scotland, in Ireland,

because the cold turns, the old scars purple. Still on the road to recovery. Exclamation point. So we should point out that Natalie's father died by suicide. Her brother, who gave an interview to The Daily Beast, said that he thought this relationship was entirely unhealthy, that she had always denied publicly that her father had died by suicide. She said he died in his sleep, but clearly losing her father. however she wants to, to put it, had a big impact on her.

And Trump is 45 years older than her. Well, and he's also the president of the United States. Well, he's not going to be the first president. to have had an affair with a younger woman. No, no. Whatever her relationship with Trump is, it has also and it's interesting because it kind of balances. There's this submissive trad wife relationship on the one hand, but on the other hand, a relationship that has given her enormous power.

Okay. So let's talk about the power. that she wields because she apparently sends people back. And we had a story in The Daily Beast about this today. that when she has managed to get a letter from someone or a text or an email. from someone in front of Trump, she lets them know by saying printed. That's her code word for I have given it and he has read it. Yeah. And she became during the campaign, she became the person who was the, the,

the congressional leadership had to deal had to. if they wanted to see Trump, they had to go through her. So she's the gatekeeper. The media had to go through her. She she was the gatekeeper and a, you know, and which which in itself is. a very powerful position because you don't have to put people through. You don't get through unless she wants you to get through. And. so and that. became a cause of enormous concern, actually, was concern for everybody,

people in the congressional leaders then would would contact Susie. Wiles, who was the the head of the campaign and then became. the chief of staff and said, who is this person? So who's more powerful now, Susie Wiles or Natalie Harp? Well, I mean, who is more able to get the president to do something specific? Natalie Harp Susie Wiles and actually, this is why.

Susie Wiles has been a success. She stays away from the president. Really? And she regards her job as the chief. administrative officer of the executive branch. Okay, so she's getting everybody else to do their jobs. Madeley is the person who is next to Trump, suggesting to him what he should be doing. or interpreting what he often, interpreting.

what he wants done and then telling everyone else that. So she is the president's. She acts in the president's stead much more than the than the chief of staff. Actually, let's just talk about Natalie. Harp's persistent. She's so persistent that during the campaign, when they moved to Bedminster, she ends up basically sleeping in the women's locker room. One of the themes of the campaign, and this is an overt.

theme of the campaign, is what to do about Natalie. I mean, you have these people, these these, these relatively responsible professionals. Susie Wiles, Chris lost to. Jason Miller, you know, these these. These people who do this for a living. They run campaigns. And into their midst comes this person who doesn't run campaigns, doesn't know anything about politics, and who very quickly takes.

the primary position with regard to the candidate, often undermining what they are trying to do. So this then became a quote, what do we do about this person? What do we do about about Natalie Harp, who's writing these love letters to to Trump? And so they first tried to separate her from Trump. So she's on the golf course.

She's following Trump in a, in her own golf cart with the. with the portable printer and with the papers, the papers. So they take away the golf cart they take away. So this is just just unavailable and you know, and this is another thing. with, with Trump. Trump, you know, out of sight, out of mind. So he's and that's the theory. He's like a two year old when the ball rolls under the sofa. Objects impermanent. So that's the theory. She won't be there.

And so he's not going to say where do you think about that. Right. But what she does is she follows him then on foot. and there's there's some video of her running after carrying the portable. printer, running after the golf cart, then then in the summer of 2023, the campaign moves from Palm. Beach to Bedminster. You know, Trump is a snowbird. He doesn't doesn't spend the summer in in Palm Beach.

So they move up there and she's not allocated a room again, another way to split her to distance her from Trump. She'll have to stay with the with the with the remaining group in West Palm Beach. Instead, she somehow arranges with the. the cleaning staff at Bedminster to get one of the maids rooms.

So when you say she arranges it with the cleaning stuff, do you think that Trump. actually knows all about this and is saying to the cleaning stuff, no, Natalie has a room. No. Okay. She is just. She's integrated herself. You know, you're you're around this. You get to know who's there. And if you're really good at this, you know, all of the all of the players. and in the players at Bedminster are not are not insignificant. You want to this is all about leverage. And at every point.

So she gets a maids room. But the maids room is not close enough to Trump. So she vacates that maid's room and spends. the summer camping out in the in the women's locker room, which is much better positioned. in terms of proximity to the main house and to Trump. So is she sleeping on what, a massage bed? Or she's sleeping on those, like low lockers that you changed your shoes on?

I mean, because they don't normally come furnished with beds. No no no no, she apparently brought in. Yes. Some some kind of mass sleeping. Well, she brought in a sleeping or and a. and a yoga mat and something she may do. Oh, Natalie. No more and more interesting. I mean, resourceful, resourceful. I mean, she is again. She is fighting all of the other professionals in this campaign. and the Secret Service, and she's winning so.

and she not only is winning, but she has won. Right? So now she's the second most important person in the white House. How does the first lady and just let me before? Because I just flashed on that there was a moment in the campaign, a moment of high drama in which basically basically. the the campaign professionals decided they had to do something. What were they going to do? Among the among the, the, the, the discussion?

Should we go to Melania and lay out our concerns? And they decided that that relationship was was. so fraught that they probably should not do that. But they eventually decided and this was this took a lot. to go directly to Trump and say, this is this is a major concern. And what did Trump say? He said, oh, she just loves her president. and waved them off.

So she obviously makes him feel good in a lonely job. I mean, as it happens, I'm reading Robert Harris novel precipice. at the moment about the British prime Minister, Herbert Asquith, who had to lead Britain through the beginning of the First World War. And he has. So Asquith is 60. He has a sort of emotional support. in and he's sort of obsessed by her. A girl called Venetia Stanley, who's in her early 20s.

and 550 of his love notes to her, have been men maintained. She kept them all. And they're now Robert Harris has put them in this book, and they are absolutely fascinating in terms of him telling her every secret. He amazingly includes telegrams from the German ambassador. saying, we are on the eve of war, Germany is going to do this. And he's like, my darling, please read this telegram. Now you understand what I have to deal with. If only you were here.

And of course, her parents understanding. what what's going on and being extremely alarmed, remove her. and take her to some godforsaken place where they have a house in Wales, and he's desperate to get there and always contriving to to get together. It's fascinating. And of course, Margot Asquith, his wife, new. kept very racy diaries, was monitoring who was having sex with who. all times, but doesn't really chronicle this relationship. except to say that she knows her husband loves being surrounded by a harem.

And it made me think of Donald Trump. and all the women around him, and Hope Hicks and Margot Martin. Let's go back. I mean, I think it's in it's an interesting thing. So remember, Donald Trump cannot be alone, literally cannot be alone. But his idea of being with people is not necessarily. like your idea or my idea or anyone's idea. It's like literally having an audience, people there, and their job is just to listen to him.

Prior to his political life, most of these people who were listening to. him were guys, and they were the the driver, the bodyguard, you know, the the sound man on The Apprentice. who, who I spoke to for one of my books became. became one of his guys with with him constantly, you know, saw him, saw him go off with other women, saw him, had to read books to him.

because Donald Trump doesn't read, had to read books to him. Which books were they reading? Your books? Were they reading your books to him? No, they were reading. He would say, you know, Trump would would see him with a book. And he said, what's that book? And what what what would they be like? And then he would say, like thrillers. Yeah. Would they? It wouldn't be a barn of streams of my father. No. Yeah. No more thrillers. Random. You know, it's like with, with with, you know, Trump.

It's like a book. What is that, a book? And then and then you say, read, read, read me something out of it. What do you like about it? Oh, read it to me, that kind of thing. So anyway, these guys would sit around and I've been in there, I've been with Trump, and there is a set of guys sitting around. And when I was on one occasion when I was with Trump. and it was with him in Beverly Hills, and he had a house in Beverly Hills,

and Trump and I are talking, and there are these guys sitting there playing cards. And then his security people, security. people strive for service people, service people. And these are the guys he's always talking to these guys, and they don't really talk back to him. Or they go and they get him things. Yes. So when the campaign starts in earnest, Jack, his his daughter.

and her husband, Jared, and I think they're there, they're kind of excited by the campaign, but they're also. a little wary of this. It's Donald Trump. What is he going to do? I mean, is he going to, you know, and he's running for president. Is he going to new level? Yes. Is he going to embarrass them? Is this good for the brand? Bad for the brand? You know, they're all tied to the Trump brand. So they put in their person. And this woman by the name of Hope Hicks.

and Hope Hicks is has no political experience. She's a she's a working, working, working for Avoca as a, as a PR person. And before that she worked for Matthew Hiltzik as she well known as a PR person. But she's she's not even even in that role. She's not really a professional. She's 26 or something like that. So she has she has a minimum of experience as a PR person. But she's she's a former model. She looks good.

In fact, she looks like Avoca and looks like Melania. You start to see this, the development of this Trump look, which will then become ubiquitous around him. Right. The Mar-A-Lago look and she then becomes Hope Hicks becomes. Very, very close to Trump. also in a kind of kind of. you know, she obviously develops feelings for Trump.

I mean, I mean in feelings of admiration or, or infatuation, I, I don't know, you know, that's whether it's the power or the who knows. But she is always there and she knows just it's an interesting job. Right. So much more interesting being on a campaign. flying around the country than it is doing PR for Ivanka's fashion line. And she becomes one of, you know, one of the most powerful people. in in the 2016 campaign.

and then in the first white House, extraordinarily powerful. Mean she is this person again with no experience whatsoever, becomes. just right next to the president of the United, literally right next to the president of the United States, speaking for the president of the United States now. And so she becomes and then there is a set of other women. who pop up around her, her assistance, for instance, and they all look alike.

They they're all clearly cut from this same thing. They understand what Trump wants. He wants a woman. He wants a woman, a young woman, you know, in in her. 20s, ideally with wears her hair loose, always loose. Nobody gets to tie it back. I mean, this really is trad wife kind of kind of. Is this what most men want?

Yeah, but most men can't have it. Okay. That's interesting. That's interesting. Yes. And short skirts. Everybody wears short skirts. You know, poor Kellyanne Conway, who was significantly older. than all of these women had to also dress like this. Well, Susie Wiles doesn't dress like. No. Well, Susie Wiles, it's one of those. Those.

Those. exceptions that prove the rule, I think, is what that means. Also notable that Jared put her in. So I think Jared saw the Hope Hicks thing, reversed course and did the opposite of that. But there was also and at this point the problems. a new tension surfaces with Melania. because these these women are around him. I mean they look like her in Melania gets incredibly upset.

because then the press often confuses these women with Melania. Well, it's really it's really striking how Hope Hicks looks like Melania. I mean, this weekend there was a video released online from Mar a Lago. It was someone's social media post. And I thought, oh, Melanie is there. She's sitting behind Trump. If anchors at the same table as him with Melania's father. And then actually someone says, no, no, no, that's Eleanor Harbor. But in the picture she looks almost identical to Melania. So they have that long, thick chestnut hair.

And they're all mini Melania. No, I'm totally and I mean, she it's a major thing. And Trump says to somebody along along the way. and this is in terms of hope. Hope Hicks she meaning. Melania was what was the quote I just did. I have a Substack about the tensions. with Melania because of specifically because of these girls. and specifically because of Natalie Harp, I think is live today.

But he says, Trump says. says someone she would like me to go off a Chappaquiddick bridge with her. meaning, hope, meaning referencing obviously Teddy Kennedy and wow. Yeah. So so he's aware of it. Trump is aware of it. So it's really Natalie versus Melania? Yes. And even people within the white House say that. Natalie was one of the one of the people who was.

who argued for the ballroom and getting rid of the East wing. Wow. Natalie was really big on the ballroom and getting rid of the East. So she has been and people see this around Trump that she is working. She has worked to put herself into the position. that she is the woman closest to Donald Trump. Well, and we don't know whether or not there was much sex between Melania. and Donald either, because very clearly at the end of her documentary,

she makes it clear that. they're not spending the night of the inauguration together. Right. So it's very possible, as people around Trump have speculated, and this began in the first administration, because everybody was worried, you know, one of the great womanizer. of or or the self-styled great womanizer of our time. Well, one wanting to beat Wilt Chamberlain's record of 20,000. What was that going to be like in the white House and then.

and then as the as the first term went on. and people say, you know, I don't think he's having sex at all. So it could it was that sense, you know, that the libido. had left the room or that the libido got channeled into power. And, you know, Trump maxing Washington and just, you know, building, you know, triumphant arches to himself. Yeah. No, I mean, that was the Steve Bannon thing.

You know, I'll bet you where I bet you would prefer. that him out fucking women instead of fucking the country. Ha ha ha ha. So she's just what is her game plan here then? She's just a removed herself from American life. Well, I don't know. From American life. I think she probably has a perfectly decent American life. She is removed herself from political life and removed herself from Trump life. Which prompts a another question if she is not acting.

as the first lady, how come the taxpayers have to support her? I mean, that's I mean, I think a very particular. kind of kind of issue which goes to. which goes to the, you know, whether this is a complete sham or are you overlooking. the fact that she turned up for the Easter egg roll at the. Well, she does obviously does these and these are highly. negotiated ceremonial appearances.

But let's turn. She does not live in the white House. She does not live. She may not have. an at least people in the white House believe that she is not spent. a night at the white House during the. during this term so well, and we know that he's taken the furniture out of her room. She has I mean, Melania is clearly building her own separate life, her separate brand, a separate business,

probably having a fine time about it. But she is. Let's let's be perfectly clear. Not acting as the first lady of the United States, do we know how Donald Trump's children get on with Natalie? What does Don Jr. And what does Eric Trump make of her? And do we know how she gets on with Barron, who's also not very much. inevitable? At one point during the campaign, Eric.

got involved and said, what is this person doing here? And and he tried to take a proactive move. to circumscribe her relationship with the president didn't work at all. There's the other element, which is kind of distinct to Donald Trump, which is that he he just demands. people who are abject people. And and if you are willing to do that,

if you are willing to echo what he wants, channel what he wants, not in any way. create any kind of friction around him, then I think that that that means you're you're in a in like Flint. Plus, if you're a young woman, if Natalie Harp disappeared. tomorrow, would Donald Trump notice? No.

Oh, brutal. Natalie, did you hear that? That's that's brutal. Because there are other people. strangely ready to take her place. They don't take her place because. Because while she is totally. malleable, totally. submissive to Donald Trump, she's fighting. a vicious rearguard action to keep everybody else out.

Okay, so Jon Ossoff raised her as. he was giving a speech to his supporters. He's obviously, you know, contemplating a run as the Democratic candidate for 2028. It's definitely hit a nerve. We know that MAGA supporters think that Melania is a class act. They love Melania. They think she's elegant, which she is elegant. How does this play politically for Donald Trump?

An overreliance on Natalie Harp, the fact that she's there, the fact. that his opponents are now calling out Natalie's omnipresence. You know, I mean, I would say that, you know, I mean, I've ceased. being able to explain why things. Why things don't. why the obvious is not obvious to everyone. It is obvious that Melania Trump is.

the Melania Trump, and Donald Trump's marriage is has bears. no resemblance to anybody else's idea of a conventional marriage. And that is putting it nicely. I mean, I'd say I'd say more specifically, you know, they live absolutely separate lives. So. But isn't that a kind of isn't that something that rich people do. because they have many houses?

I mean, it's very easy to live separate lives and maintain. And, you know, you come together for big holidays. But to be the president of the United States means that you have. you observe, you are expected to observe. some minimal conventions, live with your wife. And and if you have a marriage in which you have not. been in this same house with your wife. for the past two years, that ought to raise some obvious questions.

So do you think his supporters care? Are they. going to turn their vengeful eye on Natalie Harp? Do they think Melania has? Well, I mean, I think it's I think it's a. I mean, this is always everyone the, the the media has known that this relationship, the relationship. with Donald Trump and Melania Trump has been not a conventional relationship. for since Donald Trump went to the white House in 2017.

There is a reluctance to talk about this. I mean, perhaps suddenly we're getting. to the moment where there's less reluctance to talk about this, but there certainly has been a reluctance to talk about this. Well, and it took Jon Ossoff, the senator from Georgia, who's up for reelection. in November, to bring up the fact that Trump doesn't want to do his job. He wants to fly around in grift, force one with Natalie. That seems I mean, I mean, that was I think that is,

you know, obviously what a kind of hyperbole does it, that. he doesn't want to do his job, he wants to do his job in the way he does his job. I mean, he spends he spends every waking minute. as the president of the United States as, as he construed that job. But it was interesting that. that Ossoff put Natalie and put Natalie by her first name.

into the narrative here, that she is a significant, meaningful, and quite possibly pernicious player in this administration. Well, simple should pay attention to there are there are legitimate questions. I mean, actually, you know, I invite someone in the press corps. to stand up and say, hey, you know, what's with Natalie Harp?

What is her job? What are her responsibilities? How much time does she spend with Donald Trump? You can go down the list of. of questions that ought to be asked about this person. who has significant influence in, in the executive branch. and the other person. we haven't mentioned, who also comes out of the same sort of visual. look is Caroline. Leavitt, who's now leaving as white House press secretary, but as you pointed out,

has actually lasted quite a long time, certainly for a Trump administration. So, I mean, so the question is, and maybe we are getting to this, who is Natalie Harp? Well, and certainly Jon Ossoff comments triggered the white House. Stephen Chung, who's always, you know, complaining about us. and saying you're a lying piece of shit and I'm a bag of shit or whatever. His most imaginative insult of the week is. when, after Ossoff, very directly.

So Natalie feels like someone Trump. wants his team to protect very much. I mean, his his team has tried. Let's let's be very clear about this. His team has tried to get her out. They have done everything. Everything that they believe is. possible short of their own resignations. And and at one point in the campaign, it came very close to them saying, we're going to resign if, if, if this continues now,

they didn't because, you know, they never do. And and I think at that point they had they were seeing a, a possible victory. And they've come to think, well, we got to get we got to deal with this. I mean, and God knows they deal with Donald Trump so well. And is it possible that he's nicer when Natalie's around, that. if she's his emotional chief of staff, he's actually much easier to deal with? If you know that Natalie's there, she's always there. So I don't think it makes it makes any difference.

Donald Trump is comes with Natalie Harp. That's part of the package any moment of the day. I mean, she sits right outside of the Oval Office. So she's always, always this kind of, you know, ear cocked and always rushing in. Anything is happening there. She's there. Wow. Well, watch this space. I'm very excited to look at some of your photos. I know they're deep somewhere in your files, but. you've got new photos that people haven't seen of Natalie Harper.

And she someone you've been chronicling for, what is it, three years now? Yeah. No, I mean it totally fascinating story. And it's a particular Trump story. How these people without rhyme nor reason. rise to the have have managed. to come into the exact center of, of power in the United States. I mean, you know, and she's hardly the most,

you know, the most extraordinary of these of these people, although she is the one who has probably gained more power. and and stayed at the center longer than anyone else. And do we know who else Natalie talks to outside of Trump? I mean, do we think there's anyone I mean, I wonder some examples, you know, the the the question of the the weird story of Laura Loomer. How did Laura Loomer get access to Donald Trump.

in, in in ways that have been meaningful and impacted? Lots of decisions through Natalie. So Natalie Harp brought Laura Luma into the circle of trust. Yeah. You she Laura Loomer used to appear. on the campaign plane, and then that was at the moment, somehow she's become vaguely legitimized just by her her access. But at that point, she was just an, you know, a.

nine over 11 denier conspiracist, you know? Well, she always person but but she Natalie led her onto the, onto the plane and and you know Trump enjoyed her. and I think that she's Laura lumieres presence in the in the white House. I mean after after the election for the last two years. has been because Natalie gives her access. Well, you know, Trump. has just just imagines Trump has no idea who's appearing in front of him.

How does somebody come into the Oval Office? Right. Nobody. Trump. Trump doesn't know and doesn't care because it doesn't really see people. I mean, it's just the voice going blah blah. Just as long as someone is their bodies in front of him. Right. And and and just to set this scene, you know, the often in the white House, there are always a dozen people, often two dozen. people, sometimes three dozen people in the white House.

So people are just coming in and being kind of Natalie. is kind of moving them to the in the front of the desk. And then in that gives you a moment, you know, a moment. First you have to listen to him and then. but you might get a moment to say something you get access to. Yes. Laura Loomer will say, oh, that's a bitch. That person is going to betray you. Fire them. Okay. She's like a sort of. One of the witches from Macbeth.

Seems to dignify the situation, but. Wow. Well, what a fascinating story. And of course, as you say, she's hiding in plain sight. She's been there all along. And only now since Jon Ossoff, you know, pointed her out. Has the coverage really taken off? I think none of this makes any sense. So.

So is there a moment in which everybody comes. to their senses and says, hey, what's going on here? Or do we continue down this path? Yes. But Melania, I feel, has a. Could blow the whole thing up if she wanted to. Just before we wrap up, I wanted to show you a gift that someone has sent us. It's actually a piece of the Berlin Wall.

We were discussing this about three weeks ago. Here it actually is. I'm going to let you unwrap it from one of our fans, Noel Corker and Noel, thank you for watching listening. to the podcast, and particularly thank you for a piece of the Berlin Wall. Michael talks about actually being in Berlin. for the end of the wall, and it comes with a certificate. It comes with a certificate. It's a certificate from whom? It's from from the Germans, I guess it's from original Berliner Mauer.

Stein. Original Berlin Wall brick. Thank you so much. Thank you so much. It will go up on the Daily Beast bookshelf. Divided city no longer. I don't see myself on the Daily Beast. You know what? We've had several copies of your book. Well, here's what happens. It gets stolen. It gets stolen. It's really annoying. We will order more copies. Well, let's see if. Noel. Thank you very much. If anyone steals the Berlin Wall, I hope they don't steal the Berlin Wall.

I home, they don't steal the Berlin Wall. Divided city no more. No thank you. And if you have been. Thank you for joining us. We'll be back on Thursday with more about Natalie Harp. And hopefully Michael will have found his photos of her by then. Big thanks to our production team Ryan Murray, John Romero, Rachel Paso, Heather Pissarro, and Neil Rosenhaus. So the good news is we have so many beast tier members now. There are too many names to read out and we really appreciate your support.