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The Guardian - US
The Guardian - US
World
David Smith in Washington

Who is Natalie Harp? Trump’s closest and most devoted aide is in the spotlight

a woman and a man stand outside
Natalie Harp and Donald Trump attend a dignified transfer at Dover air force base on 22 July 2026 in Dover, Delaware. Photograph: Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

Wearing shoulder-length blond hair, gold earrings and a red dress, cancer survivor Natalie Harp introduced herself to the 2020 Republican national convention as “a formerly forgotten American from California” and compared Donald Trump to George Bailey, the everyman hero played by James Stewart in the classic film It’s a Wonderful Life.

“George Bailey’s father was right,” smiled Harp, her voice echoing in the Andrew W Mellon auditorium in pandemic-hit Washington. “All you can take with you is that which you’ve given away. Mr President, that makes you the richest man in the world.”

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