Melania Trump “did not appear” alongside her husband if his 35-year-old aide Natalie Harp was nearby, according to presidential biographer Michael Wolff.
The first lady was last seen in public with Donald Trump on July 19. Meanwhile, the president has recently been almost constantly surrounded by his favorite aides, with Natalie Harp particularly prominent among them. Against the backdrop of her constant presence, Melania’s rare public appearances have sparked fresh speculation about tensions within the presidential family.
According to an analysis, since Trump’s inauguration on January 20, 2025, Melania has appeared in public just 47 times over the course of the year. During the first seven months of 2026, she appeared alongside her husband on just 38 days.
Now Donald Trump’s biographer Michael Wolff claims that Melania deliberately kept her distance from her husband because she did not want to be around Natalie Harp.
In a new post in his Howl Substack newsletter, Wolff wrote that Harp’s “central presence” in Trump’s life helps explain why Melania appeared so rarely alongside him even during the 2024 presidential campaign. According to the author, Melania’s public appearances with her husband were “carefully coordinated and choreographed,” and the first lady “did not appear if Harp was around.” Wolff claims that because Harp was almost always near Trump, Melania rarely appeared with him — with the exception of the final week of the campaign.
Natalie Harp Tried to Stay as Close to Trump as Possible
Wolff also described unusual circumstances surrounding Harp’s stay at Trump’s golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey.
When Trump’s team moved from Palm Beach to Bedminster in 2023, Harp, according to Wolff, was not given a separate room. However, she allegedly found a way to remain close to the president: she initially arranged a sleeping space for herself in a staff room and later moved even closer — into the women’s locker room.
In addition, according to The New York Times journalists Maggie Haberman and Jonathan Swan’s book Original Sin, Harp allegedly wrote love letters to Trump and left them in his “personal spaces.” One of the letters reportedly said: “You are the only thing that matters to me.”
Wolff claims that Harp’s influence allegedly extended far beyond the authority of an ordinary White House staffer.
“Harp surpassed White House staffers, as well as his wife and family, in influence,” he said. According to the biographer, “no one came between Harp and Trump,” and access to the president could allegedly only be obtained through her.
Against the backdrop of Trump and Harp’s growing closeness, Wolff claims that Melania did not want to move into the White House with her husband after his return to office and instead preferred to spend time in New York.
“Except for ceremonial events or strictly official occasions, she has opted out of the role of wife. Practically speaking, there is no place for her anymore,” Wolff wrote.
At the same time, Wolff himself claims that people in the president’s inner circle do not suspect Trump and Harp of having a sexual relationship. According to him, there is a perception that Natalie is madly in love with the president and wants to become his “wife destined for a higher purpose.”
One unnamed aide described their relationship as “a Christian relationship based on spiritual devotion.”
The White House rejected Wolff’s claims. Administration spokesperson Davis Ingle told the Irish Star that Michael Wolff is a “professional scoundrel and serial liar” and added an insulting remark about him.
Follow NEWS.am STYLE on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram
19:38, September 9
iPhone from 1937: A Nearly 90-Year-Old Painting Sparks a Bizarre Conspiracy Theory16:29, September 9
The Boy Who Looks Like Boris Johnson: Why Steal Renoir at All?15:49, September 9
Labubu Meets LVMH: Pop Mart Opens Flagship Store in Paris15:22, September 9
Where Has Lady Gaga Gone? Singer’s Disappearance Sparks Secret Wedding Rumors14:37, September 9
Current “Miss Austria” Dies Suddenly at 2214:10, September 9
Cardi B Shows Off Her $15,000 Diamond Butt Piercing13:22, September 9
“No Kissing”: Billy Baldwin Vows Never to Work With Sharon Stone Again12:38, September 9
A Joke That Went Too Far: Gwyneth Paltrow Reveals How Her Viral “Vagina-Scented” Candle Came to Be12:17, September 9
Nicolas Cage’s $10.5 Million Luxury Malibu Mansion Nearly Swallowed by Giant Sinkhole11:51, September 9
Trump’s Generous Gifts to Young Female Aides: Each Received $45,00011:36, September 9
Elon Musk Wanted Children “Before the Civil War” and Offered $40 Million for Silence: Shocking Claims by His Former Partner10:43, September 9
Deep Plunges, Sheer Looks and Barely Any Fabric: Kim Kardashian Shares Archive of Revealing Fittings