President Donald Trump is considering longtime aide Natalie Harp as a possible successor to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt, according to CNN, potentially elevating one of the president's closest but least publicly visible aides into the administration's most prominent communications job.
Leavitt is expected to leave the post at the end of August to spend more time with her two young children after giving birth to her second child in May. Her planned departure has set off a search inside the White House that includes Harp and Republican strategist and CNN commentator Scott Jennings, among other potential candidates.
Harp, 35, has "entered the mix" of contenders, an unnamed source told CNN, while Trump has reportedly raised the possibility of giving her the job in conversations with advisers. The selection process remains at an early stage, with chief of staff Susie Wiles expected to meet additional candidates before making a recommendation.
Choosing Harp would represent an unusually sharp transition from behind-the-scenes presidential aide to one of Washington's most televised positions. The former One America News Network personality joined Trump's operation in 2022 and now serves as a special assistant and executive assistant to the president.
Harp became known inside Trump's operation as the "human printer," a nickname The New York Times reported she earned during the 2024 campaign because she traveled with a portable printer and supplied Trump with favorable news articles and social-media posts. She has since remained in unusually close proximity to the president while largely avoiding interviews and maintaining a low public profile.
Her relationship with Trump stretches back several years. Harp, a cancer survivor, appeared on Fox News in 2019 and credited Trump's 2018 Right to Try law with helping her gain access to experimental treatment for stage 2 bone cancer. She subsequently spoke at the Faith and Freedom conference and the 2020 Republican National Convention before working for One America News.
Leavitt has publicly defended Harp amid scrutiny of her access to Trump, calling her "one of the most loyal and hardest-working aides on President Trump's team."
A promotion would also increase Harp's compensation. She currently earns about $150,000 annually, according to the report, while the press secretary position carries a salary of $195,200, the highest federal salary level for full-time White House Office employees and Leavitt's current pay rate.
Harp's prominence has increasingly drawn attacks from Democrats. Sen. Jon Ossoff of Georgia, who faces re-election in November, recently accused Trump of preferring to "do the job" less than pursuing personal projects and traveling with Natalie on what Ossoff called an "apparently defenceless flying palace gifted by the emir of Qatar."
The remarks followed reports that Harp was among a small circle of aides, including Dan Scavino and Walt Nauta, who traveled with Trump aboard a decoy military flight from Turkey during a security threat last month. Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent traveled separately.
White House communications director Steven Cheung responded to Ossoff's criticism by saying the senator should "look deep into his soul and ask himself why he's a miserable person who hates this country" rather than attack White House personnel.
Harp has faced scrutiny from some former Trump officials as well. Sarah Matthews, a former deputy White House press secretary who resigned after the Jan. 6, 2021, Capitol riot, told CNN's "Laura Coates Live" that Harp's proximity to Trump had generated concerns among some members of the Secret Service and the president's 2024 campaign operation.
CNN has separately reported that Harp climbed into the trunk area of an SUV in Trump's motorcade in October 2023 after being told there wasn't room for her before a New York court appearance. Her estranged brother, Preston Harp, described her to CNN as Trump's "biggest fan" and said she had long had an "obsession" with presidents.
The material provided doesn't independently establish those accounts, and Harp's candidacy hasn't been formally announced by the White House.
Jennings, meanwhile, brings a substantially different professional profile to the search. The CNN political commentator previously served as a special assistant to President George W. Bush and deputy director of political affairs and has been a longtime adviser to Republican Senate leader Mitch McConnell.
Wiles met Jennings at Mastro's Steakhouse in Washington at the administration's request, two people familiar with the meeting told CNN. One senior White House official described Jennings as "competent and good on TV."
