Harp, a former One America News Network show host, has emerged as a key gatekeeper to the president. Her presence with Trump when the president left Air Force One as a decoy while sneaking on to another plane in a service cart \u2013 even as senior officials remained behind \u2013 drew attention.<\/p>\n
Jon Ossoff, a Democratic senator from Georgia, amplified that attention with comments at a rally Sunday in Atlanta. Speaking of Trump, Ossoff said: \u201cHe golfs and trades stocks. See, he doesn\u2019t want to do the job; he wants to build his ballroom and travel with Natalie on their apparently defenseless flying palace gifted by the Emir of Qatar.\u201d<\/p>\n
A clip of his commentary went viral on social media, drawing attacks from the president\u2019s defenders.<\/p>\n
White House communications director Steven Cheung posted in reply on X: \u201cJon Jackoff has to be the biggest cuck loser in politics,\u201d while White House spokesman Davis Ingle posted, \u201cJon Ossoff is a cringeworthy, feminine theatre kid cosplaying as Barack Obama. Nobody gives a shit what this lightweight loser says.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ossoff marveled at the reaction to his observations in an interview<\/a> Wednesday with Laurence O\u2019Donnell on MS Now. \u201cIt\u2019s been amazing to watch this White House melt down over this all week,\u201d Ossoff said. \u201cThese White House staffers are adults, public officials paid by the taxpayer with immense power in positions of public trust. And whether it\u2019s Natalie Harp printing out Donald Trump\u2019s daily dose of delusion and flattery, or Peter Navarro steering taxpayer-funded loans to Trump family investments, or Pete Hegseth deluding the president daily into deepening this quagmire in the Middle East, no one cares about their feelings.\u201d<\/p>\n The pile on continues: Rosie O\u2019Donnell, a longstanding Trump antagonist filling in Wednesday night for Jimmy Kimmel, picked at the topic.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s all I\u2019m going to say about you tonight, sweetheart,\u201d O\u2019Donnell said of Trump. \u201dYou got to realize it\u2019s time to hang up your wig and let Natalie tuck you in. Time to go nighty-night!\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a011.56 EDT<\/p>\n Key events<\/p>\n Scott Jennings reportedly pushing for White House press secretary role<\/p>\n And speaking of Karoline Leavitt, Scott Jennings is pushing to replace her as White House press secretary when she departs at the end of the month, Politico reported<\/a> this morning.<\/p>\n Per Politico\u2019s Dasha Burns: \u201cAfter clips of Jennings defending Natalie Harp made their way around the WH \u2013 including some he sent to senior staffers himself \u2013 he reached out to schedule a private meeting with [White House chief of staff] Susie Wiles over the weekend, a person close to the WH told me.<\/p>\n \u201cNo decision was made and no offer extended. The process to replace Leavitt remains slow-moving.\u201d<\/p>\n CNN is also reporting<\/a> that Jennings has emerged as an early frontrunner to take over in the role \u2013 with the caveat that its sources \u201cstressed that the process is far from complete\u201d \u2013 and met Wiles recently at Mastro\u2019s Steakhouse in Washington DC at the request of the White House.<\/p>\n Multiple staffers told CNN they believe Jennings has her backing, but others pushed back on that claim and said Wiles plans to meet several other potential contenders before making any decisions.<\/p>\n Jennings, CNN\u2019s most prominent pro-Trump commentator and longtime conservative strategist, previously served in the George W Bush administration and an adviser to GOP senator Mitch McConnell.<\/p>\n Asked if he wants the job, Jennings told Politico: \u201cI don\u2019t have anything to say about that.\u201d<\/p>\n Scott Jennings speaks at the 12th annual Algemeiner J100 Gala in New York City on 9 March. Photograph: Sylvain Gaboury\/Patrick McMullan\/Getty ImagesShare<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a014.49 EDT<\/p>\n Further to that, Trump\u2019s outgoing White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt did not issue a flat-out denial of its report that Natalie Harp resisted applying for security clearance for months before eventually relenting after pressure from White House staff.<\/p>\n When asked for comment by MS NOW<\/a>, Leavitt said: \u201cNatalie Harp has a security clearance like everyone else, and she is a loyal and hardworking member of President Trump\u2019s team.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Allegations over Natalie Harp’s lack of security clearance ‘deadly serious’ if true, says former senior adviser to Barack Obama<\/p>\n David Axelrod, a former senior adviser to Barack Obama, has expressed concern over the Natalie Harp affair, responding to reports (which the Guardian has not verified) that she resisted applying for security clearance on X<\/a>:<\/p>\n double quotation markIf this story is true, and the person closest to the @POTUS and his thinking on a daily basis has no security clearance and refuses to submit to the process of getting it, it\u2019s a deadly serious issue.<\/p>\n MS NOW reported<\/a> that Harp, Donald Trump\u2019s closest aide, declined several times over more than a year to apply for the routine security clearance normally obtained by West Wing staffers to work at the White House, citing two people familiar with the matter.<\/p>\n The people did not know Harp\u2019s reasons for declining to complete the process. \u201cAfter concerns mounted among the White House counsel\u2019s office and security officials, the president himself intervened, and Harp in recent months filled out the forms to launch a formal federal background investigation and received the clearance,\u201d MS NOW reported.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.34 EDT<\/p>\n The state department has declared that Min Zin, an American scholar arrested in China during an academic trip is being wrongfully detained.<\/p>\n The announcement \u201cfollows an extensive review of the circumstances surrounding his 3 June detention in Yunnan, China, where Zin had traveled to attend an academic conference at the invitation of the Chinese government,\u201d the state department release says. \u201cThere are now two wrongfully detained U.S. citizens in China: Mr. Zin and Dr. Youlin Chen.\u201d<\/p>\n The Chinese government arrested<\/a> Zin, a US scholar who writes about Myanmar and Chinese foreign policy in June for \u201cespionage activities.\u201d Zin had visited China many times before without incident, according to Burmese activists. Zin was a student activist in Myanmar during the pro-democracy movement in 1988. He later sought asylum in the US.<\/p>\n His arrest follows that of Youlin Chen, a seismologist arrested in 2024 by the Chinese government<\/a>. Chen\u2019s research includes how to detect underground nuclear tests using seismological data. Advocates for his freedom believe the Chinese government may be trying to determine the extent of America\u2019s ability to detect an underground nuclear test.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a013.18 EDT<\/p>\n The Democratic National Committee has narrowed its finalist cities to host the 2028 Democratic National Convention to Boston, Denver, and Philadelphia. The convention is scheduled to take place from 7-10 August 2028, with a final city selection expected later in the year.<\/p>\n Chicago and Atlanta are a little salty about that.<\/p>\n Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens expressed some irritation at hearing about the finalist selection from the news. He blasted the DNC in a letter Thursday, Fox 5 Atlanta reported<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cFor the DNC to not even include Atlanta in the shortlist means that the DNC does not consider Atlanta or Georgia relevant to the past, present, or future of the Democratic Party,\u201d Dickens said, adding, \u201cThey are afraid to leave their comfort zone and blind to the fact that the South is the answer. They are abandoning Atlanta, abandoning the South, and once again abandoning Black voters.\u201d<\/p>\n Emily Soong, spokesperson for the Chicago 2028 Bid Committee, said that \u201cChicago is proud to have hosted the best Democratic National Convention in history, and we were honored to raise our hand once again to be considered for 2028. We are deeply committed to the success of the next convention, and we are all-in to support whichever host city is selected in this process.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a012.27 EDT<\/p>\n Swalwell’s electronics seized and home raided by FBI – report<\/p>\n An FBI team seized electronic devices from former US representative Eric Swalwell at the San Francisco airport on Saturday, then raided his home in Washington, DC, the next day, CNN reported<\/a> Thursday.<\/p>\n The raid is part of a federal investigation into the sexual assault allegations which ultimately drove the Bay Area Democrat to resign from office in April, sources familiar with the investigation told CNN. The Manhattan District Attorney\u2019s Office and the Los Angeles Sheriff\u2019s Department subsequently opened criminal investigations on Swalwell.<\/p>\n The White House released damaging declassified documents this week about Swalwell\u2019s alleged relationship with Christine Fang, a suspected Chinese spy. The documents show that Swalwell told FBI agents in 2015 that he had had \u201cphysical relations\u201d with Fang when she was campaigning on his behalf as an unpaid volunteer in 2012. Swalwell served on the House Select Committee on Intelligence when he spoke with the FBI in 2015, and remained so through their investigation, which did not result in charges.<\/p>\n A report<\/a> by the San Francisco Chronicle on 10 April that Swalwell sexually assaulted an ex-staffer while she was too intoxicated to consent was followed by additional CNN reporting that surfaced three other women with detailed allegations of inappropriate conduct.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a011.25 EDT<\/p>\n Historian Heather Cox Richardson weighed in on the attention that White House aide Natalie Harp has drawn over the last week.<\/p>\n In the most recent edition of Richardson\u2019s \u201cLetters from an American\u201d newsletter<\/a>, the Boston College history professor and popular writer took note of the strident attacks the White House made on CNN reporter Kristen Holmes after she asked Trump about comments on Harp made by Jon Ossoff at an Atlanta rally Sunday.<\/p>\n \u201cYou could almost feel the palpable relief that the White House might be able to gin up a controversy that could rally the base, one that, for the first time in a long time, didn\u2019t automatically show the president or the administration in a bad light,\u201d Richardson wrote. \u201cUndermining Ossoff, whose speeches have been a particularly sharp thorn in the administration\u2019s side lately, appeared to be icing on the cake.\u201d<\/p>\n Richardson described the reaction as a \u201cStreisand effect,\u201d drawing additional attention to a subject conservatives might prefer to let lie, and \u201cmanufactured outrage\u201d which distracts from the other topics Ossoff raised in the speech \u2013 Trump\u2019s profiteering from his service in the White House, the consequences of the Iran<\/a> war and rising prices for consumers.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a011.01 EDT<\/p>\n A White House meeting on cryptocurrency and is amplifying a spike in bitcoin values Thursday.<\/p>\n President Donald Trump<\/a> \u2013 who disclosed $1.4 billion in cryptocurrency earnings from his family\u2019s investments in 2025 \u2013 is pushing congress to pass the CLARITY Act, which would define cryptocurrency as a commodity and move much of its regulation to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.<\/p>\n Bitcoin \u2013 along with gold and other commodities \u2013 began rising sharply in value at 10:30 Wednesday morning when the US treasury department announced it would double its long-end bond buybacks to at least $4 billion per operation, supporting market liquidity. That set off a short squeeze in cryptocurrencies. Twenty-four hours later, bitcoin hovered around $71,500, an increase of about 10 percent in value.<\/p>\n \u201cWe need Congress to take the next step by passing the Clarity Act \u2013 a fair version of the Clarity Act,\u201d Trump said in opening remarks at a summit held Wednesday on the legislation with cryptocurrency industry leaders. \u201cIt\u2019s a very, very powerful structured legislation which will keep us ahead of China, keep us ahead of everyone else, will open the door to the next wave of innovations and innovators.\u201d<\/p>\n Thursday morning, the CFTC\u2019s Innovation Advisory Committee held its inaugural meeting to discuss the regulation of crypto assets, artificial intelligence, and prediction markets.<\/p>\n \u201cAmerica has long been the global hub of financial innovation,\u201d said Chairman Michael S. Selig. \u201cI look forward to meeting with the entrepreneurs, thinkers, and builders of the CFTC\u2019s Innovation Advisory Committee to discuss ways emerging technologies and financial products are shaping our markets as we embark upon the new frontier of finance.\u201d<\/p>\n The agenda<\/a> includes discussion of agentic finance and the use of AI in derivatives markets, as well as the regulation of prediction markets like Kalshi.<\/p>\n The CLARITY Act faces questions from the banking industry, which does not want crypto assets to be able to offer interest payments, which is seen as undermining traditional banking deposits. Lawmakers also want better protections against the use of cryptocurrency in money laundering and to restrict officials \u2013 including Trump \u2013 from conflicts of interest in the crypto industry.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a011.00 EDT<\/p>\n James Braid departs White House ahead of midterms<\/p>\n James Braid, the longest-serving legislative affairs director of Trump\u2019s presidency, is leaving the White House ahead of the midterms. Braid navigated the cabinet confirmations of controversial appointees like that of Pete Hegseth at defense and Robert Kennedy Jr. at health and human services. He also shepherded the One Big Beautiful Bill Act through a congress with historically-tight margins for Republicans<\/a>, while beating back war powers resolutions.<\/p>\n Republican lawmakers are acknowledging his service as he exits.<\/p>\n \u201cJames Braid has served his country with distinction and led the White House\u2019s Office of Legislative Affairs with extraordinary skill,\u201d wrote Speaker Mike Johnson on X. \u201cHis great friendship, unwavering commitment, and tireless work ethic have helped House and Senate Republicans advance President Trump\u2019s America First agenda in spite of our razor-thin majorities, and he has played an essential role in delivering historic results for the American people. We wish James, his wife Melissa, and their family all the best in their next chapter.\u201d<\/p>\n Vice President JD Vance, for whom Braid worked as legislative director before joining the White house, described him in a post on X as \u201cbrilliant.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cJames Braid had one of the toughest jobs in the entire Administration as White House Legislative Director and delivered for President Trump at every turn,\u201d Vance wrote. \u201cHe played a critical role in all of the administration\u2019s achievements in Congress: largest tax cut ever, resources to carry out President Trump\u2019s historic immigration agenda and finish the border wall, defeating two Democratic shutdowns, a landmark first crypto bill, the fastest confirmation of the cabinet in decades and much more.\u201d<\/p>\n Trump cycled through four legislative directors in his first term. The role will shift sharply if Republicans lose control of either chamber in the midterm elections, with the White House having to work to avert government shutdowns over budget battles and congressional investigations into Trump\u2019s operations.<\/p>\n His exit follows that of Pace McMullan, who worked under Braid in Senate outreach.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a011.00 EDT<\/p>\n US unemployment claims dropped to 206,000 last week, with layoffs still sparse<\/p>\n The weekly Labor Department report for jobless claims dropped to 206,000 last week from a revised 212,000 the week before, the Associated Press reported<\/a> Thursday.<\/p>\n Claims typically hover between 200,000 and 230,000. The weekly jobs report is viewed as a proxy for layoff notices.<\/p>\n The U.S. unemployment rate of 4.1% remains near historical lows, showing resilience despite higher energy prices caused by the war with Iran<\/a>. It also reflects a shrinking labor market as immigration enforcement and Baby Boomer retirement reduce the number of available workers, AP reported.<\/p>\n Nonetheless, about 1.3 million people have dropped out of the labor market over the past year. Hiring in 2026 remains well below the 166,000 monthly jobs created, on average, in 2023 and 2024, and the 491,000 a month recorded during the 2021-2022 hiring boom that followed pandemic lockdowns.<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a009.04 EDT<\/p>\n Natalie Harp worked at White House without security clearance for nearly a year \u2013 report<\/p>\n Natalie Harp, special assistant to Donald Trump, continues to be the focus of media attention Thursday after an MS Now report<\/a> revealed that she had worked at the White House for nearly a year without obtaining a security clearance.<\/p>\n Harp, a former One America News Network show host, has emerged as a key gatekeeper to the president. Her presence with Trump when the president left Air Force One as a decoy while sneaking on to another plane in a service cart \u2013 even as senior officials remained behind \u2013 drew attention.<\/p>\n Jon Ossoff, a Democratic senator from Georgia, amplified that attention with comments at a rally Sunday in Atlanta. Speaking of Trump, Ossoff said: \u201cHe golfs and trades stocks. See, he doesn\u2019t want to do the job; he wants to build his ballroom and travel with Natalie on their apparently defenseless flying palace gifted by the Emir of Qatar.\u201d<\/p>\n A clip of his commentary went viral on social media, drawing attacks from the president\u2019s defenders.<\/p>\n White House communications director Steven Cheung posted in reply on X: \u201cJon Jackoff has to be the biggest cuck loser in politics,\u201d while White House spokesman Davis Ingle posted, \u201cJon Ossoff is a cringeworthy, feminine theatre kid cosplaying as Barack Obama. Nobody gives a shit what this lightweight loser says.\u201d<\/p>\n Ossoff marveled at the reaction to his observations in an interview<\/a> Wednesday with Laurence O\u2019Donnell on MS Now. \u201cIt\u2019s been amazing to watch this White House melt down over this all week,\u201d Ossoff said. \u201cThese White House staffers are adults, public officials paid by the taxpayer with immense power in positions of public trust. And whether it\u2019s Natalie Harp printing out Donald Trump\u2019s daily dose of delusion and flattery, or Peter Navarro steering taxpayer-funded loans to Trump family investments, or Pete Hegseth deluding the president daily into deepening this quagmire in the Middle East, no one cares about their feelings.\u201d<\/p>\n The pile on continues: Rosie O\u2019Donnell, a longstanding Trump antagonist filling in Wednesday night for Jimmy Kimmel, picked at the topic.<\/p>\n \u201cThat\u2019s all I\u2019m going to say about you tonight, sweetheart,\u201d O\u2019Donnell said of Trump. \u201dYou got to realize it\u2019s time to hang up your wig and let Natalie tuck you in. Time to go nighty-night!\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a><\/p>\n Updated at\u00a011.56 EDT<\/p>\n Michele Tafoya: from unassuming NFL sideline reporter to rightwing firebrand As the third leg of NBC\u2019s Sunday Night Football crew alongside play-by-play man Al Michaels and the tart-tongued analyst Cris Collinsworth, Michele Tafoya was a paragon of deference and neutrality for 11 years as an NFL sideline reporter, dutifully relating boilerplate tactics, talking points and injury updates when she wasn\u2019t nodding along to softball interviews or fumbling through hammy production gimmicks<\/a> for viewers who might have been too offline to get the bit.<\/p>\n She was almost pathologically committed to not doing anything to draw attention to herself or her gender in an era when sideline reporting was a fast track to national celebrity. Even her football takes hewed to the middle. (\u201cNew Orleans doesn\u2019t want to lose to Atlanta twice in a season<\/a> \u2026\u201d) Anyone who says they saw the 61-year-old emerging as a rightwing firebrand was watching a different game.<\/p>\n And yet here we are. Last week, Tafoya was the decisive winner of Minnesota\u2019s US Senate Republican primary<\/a>, earning the party\u2019s nomination for November\u2019s general election. Even more striking: she beat back eight challengers, not least Adam Schwarze, the party-endorsed pro-gun, pro-military ex-Navy SEAL, and Royce White, the anti-leftist<\/a>, anti-trans NBA flameout currently testing WNBA gender norms<\/a>.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>From McDonald\u2019s to Congress: can a former fry cook flip a key district for Democrats?<\/p>\n Michael Sainato<\/p>\n During his presidential campaign in October 2024, Donald Trump<\/a> staged<\/a> a photo op at a McDonald\u2019s franchise in Pennsylvania, where he was briefly taught how to work the fryer and drive-thru window at the closed restaurant, while making several unsubstantiated claims about Kamala Harris\u2019s past summer job at McDonald\u2019s.<\/p>\n The posturing around McDonald\u2019s garnered significant publicity, as Trump and Republicans capitalized on an affordability crisis triggered by high inflation that occurred globally<\/a> due to the Covid pandemic.<\/p>\n Now, as Trump\u2019s promises<\/a> to \u201cend inflation\u201d and bring down prices have fallen flat, a real former fry cook is hoping affordability will help him flip Colorado\u2019s eighth congressional district, a swing district narrowly won by the Republican Gabe Evans in 2024. The district is rated a toss-up<\/a> by the Cook Partisan Index, and affordability is front and center<\/a> in Democratic nominee Manny Rutinel\u2019s congressional campaign.<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Iran foreign minister points to US national debt as Trump threatens ‘economic warfare’<\/p>\n Donald Trump on Wednesday posted that he intends to inflict on Iran \u201cthe MOST CRUSHING ECONOMIC OPERATION EVER TAKEN AGAINST ANY COUNTRY!\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cThis will be Economic Warfare and Isolation on an unprecedented scale,\u201d the president said.<\/p>\n On Thursday, Abbas Araghchi, Iran\u2019s minister of foreign affairs posted on X <\/a>screenshots from various news outlets reporting that the US national debt had reached $40tn for the first time in history<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThe so-called \u2018Economic D-Day\u2019 is a diversion from America\u2019s own crisis: unprecedented debt and surging interest costs,\u201d Araghchi said. \u201cDoubling down on failed policies will only bring further defeat \u2014 and enmity of Iranians. US economic terrorism threatens global economy and sovereignty worldwide.\u201d<\/p>\n Share<\/a>Democrats and Republicans outraged over $40tn national debt<\/p>\n Hello and welcome to our live coverage of US politics<\/a>.<\/p>\n The US gross national debt reached $40tn<\/a> for the first time on Wednesday, the highest in US history.<\/p>\n The government deficit doubled over the past decade, with government spending growing under both Donald Trump and Joe Biden \u2013 Trump approved $8.4tn worth of debt during his first term, with a large chunk going to Covid-19 relief spending, while Biden approved $4.3tn worth of debt.<\/p>\n In fiscal year 2026, which began in October 2025, $1.8tn has been added to the debt so far.<\/p>\n Both Democrats and Republicans responded to the milestone with outrage, with Democrats placing the blame on Trump and a Republican-controlled Congress for the uptick in spending.<\/p>\n \u201cThe President said he\u2019d pay off the debt in his first term. Well we all knew that was a lie. Instead he ran it up to $40 trillion while he and his family made billions,\u201d Mark Kelly, a Democratic senator from Arizona, posted on X<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cRepublicans ran up the tab, handed billionaires another tax break, and now wanna lecture working families about \u2018fiscal responsibility\u2019. You can\u2019t max out the card AND pretend you\u2019re the accountant. Pick a struggle,\u201d Jasmine Crockett, a Democratic congresswoman from Texas, said<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cThe Republican One Big Ugly Bill adds over $4 trillion alone\u2014all to shamefully give tax breaks to billionaires and corporations,\u201d Jason Crow, a Democratic congressman from Colorado, posted on X<\/a>.<\/p>\n Crow is referring to the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, which the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office estimates will increase the deficit by $3.3tn<\/a>. After Republican senator Rick Scott posted on X <\/a>that \u201cCongress needs to get spending under control\u201d, netizens were quick to add that he had voted to pass this bill.<\/p>\n Republican congressman Thomas Massie, who regularly clashed with Trump <\/a>and his own party as well as with his colleagues across the aisle, has long worn on his suit jacket a debt badge, a three-inch-long pin he created that updates the national debt in real time. \u201cWhen I invented the debt badge, the national debt was just over $31 trillion,\u201d he posted on X<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201c$4,000 per year per American. That\u2019s how much interest we are paying on the debt to banks & foreign countries every year. A family of four owes $16,000 per year for nothing but interest on the debt!\u201d Massie said. \u201cI lost my re-election because I voted against the policies that caused this.\u201d In May, the seven-term incumbent lost the House primary to keep his seat to Ed Gallrein, a retired Navy Seal and farmer who was recruited into the race by Trump.<\/p>\n Stay with us for more reaction.<\/p>\n![\"Andrew](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/08\/Drew_Lawrence.png\")
Andrew Lawrence<\/p>\n