Donald Trump’s niece points to the ‘most alarming’ part of his bond with Natalie Harp: ‘a very real national security threat’

President Donald Trump’s close working relationship with aide Natalie Harp has moved from a Washington whisper topic into an active political fight, after Mary Trump used a podcast appearance to argue that the issue is not only about optics. The president’s niece, who has long been one of his most visible family critics, said Harp’s proximity to Trump points to a wider concern about how information reaches him and who has access to him.

The latest round of attention followed comments from Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia and fresh reporting about Harp accompanying Trump during a secret aircraft switch tied to a reported threat involving Air Force One. Harp, a former One America News host who became a close Trump aide, has often been described in reports as someone who helps manage what Trump sees, reads and posts online.

The Washington Post has reported that she was near Trump as he dictated social media posts in real time, while other outlets have focused on questions about her security clearance and access.  After mocking Donald Trump’s plummetting ratings, Mary Trump made the comments on Jim Acosta’s podcast this week, where she connected Harp’s role to what she called her uncle’s broader decline.

Mary Trump says the security concern is the bigger issue

“I think the Natalie Harp situation is of a piece with Donald’s general decline,” Mary Trump told CNN alum Jim Acosta on his podcast this week. She said the dynamic makes him look like he needs someone “constantly with him” feeding him “positive press clippings… most of which are probably fictional. It’s a very bad look for him.”

The criticism comes after Harp’s unusually close role drew more scrutiny in conservative and mainstream media circles. The Daily Beast reported on letters Harp wrote to Trump during the 2024 campaign. Harp reportedly worked for an extended period without completing the routine security-clearance process normally expected for White House staff with close access. The Secret Service was also reported to have had concerns about Harp’s letters, according to coverage of the episode. 

Mary Trump, a psychologist and the author of “Too Much and Never Enough: How My Family Created The World’s Most Dangerous Man,” said Harp’s behavior appeared excessive and unhealthy, though she framed Trump’s dependence on praise as the central part of the dynamic. “He’s in so much trouble, and he is really lashing out and is really desperate to change the narrative, and his ego is being threatened at every turn,” she said. “He needs somebody constantly filling his head with compliments and positive messages — and she fits the bill, I have to say that.”

“It’s extreme. It’s over the top,” she added. “And again, it looks terrible. … Clearly, she’s somebody who needs help.” Still, Mary Trump said the main concern was not the personal appearance of the relationship but the access Harp may have around the president. “What I do care about — besides, again, the fact that it’s just another example of how far gone he is — she presents a very real national security threat to the United States of America, all because the president is a flailing, failing old man whose ego is fragile,” she said. “That’s the most alarming thing about it to me.”

The Harp story has also become part of a wider political back-and-forth after Ossoff’s remarks put her name into a campaign setting. The White House and Trump allies pushed back sharply, while Trump critics have continued to use the episode as an example of how his inner circle operates. In a separate thread of coverage, reports about the Turkey plane switch said Harp was among those moved with Trump while some senior officials and journalists remained elsewhere, a detail that has kept the access question alive in Washington.