President Donald Trump began Thursday morning by sharing a Truth Social post featuring himself alongside Chinese President Xi Jinping ahead of their planned summit at the White House. The image showed the two leaders standing near Xi's aircraft at Joint Base Andrews, with longtime Trump aide Natalie Harp visible in the background. The post included the words "Only Trump" above the photo, while one of the B-1 bombers that participated in Wednesday's flyover welcoming Xi was also visible in the image.
While first lady Melania Trump attended Wednesday's arrival ceremony for Xi and Chinese first lady Peng Liyuan at Andrews, she does not appear in the photograph Trump shared Thursday morning. Harp has been one of Trump's closest aides and a constant presence at his side for years. Her role in the president's orbit has drawn renewed attention in recent weeks after Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff mentioned her by name during a speech criticizing Trump as he campaigns for reelection in Georgia.
More recently, CNN anchor Kaitlan Collins reported that Harp showed Trump media coverage that contributed to the White House's decision to deny Oval Office access to CNN, MS NOW and Politico reporters. The White House has rejected that account. Responding to the allegations last week, the White House told Newsweek: "The Fake News has no place demanding a spot in the President's Oval Office.
The lies they smear are a disservice to the American public and tear at the very fabric of our Democracy. They're completely capable of reporting from directly outside." This is a breaking news article. Newsweek’s reporters and editors used Martyn, our AI assistant, to produce this story.
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