Australia’s richest person Gina Rinehart spotted at Donald Trump’s Halloween party | Gina Rinehart

Australia’s richest person, Gina Rinehart, was spotted at Donald Trump’s Halloween party at his Mar-a-Lago resort.

The mining billionaire, who has never been shy about publicly praising the controversial two-time US president, was seen talking into Trump’s ear as he read from a piece of paper in a social media post during the lavish weekend affair, as first reported by Nine newspapers.

The image, posted by former U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia Jeanine Pirro, also shows U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio.

The 1920s Great Gatsby-themed theme was also said to have attracted One Nation leader Pauline Hanson, who Nine newspapers said had been seen in a private Instagram story.

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Hanson’s office confirmed to Guardian Australia that the senator was absent from the upper house this week because she was in the United States. He declined to confirm whether Hanson attended Trump’s party.

The timing of the holiday coincided with the U.S. federal government shutdown and Trump’s attempts to cut off funding for a humanitarian organization that helps about 42 million Americans buy food each month.

Trump spoke to Truth Social on Friday, writing that he “does NOT want Americans to go hungry just because radical Democrats refuse to do the right thing and REOPEN THE GOVERNMENT.”

His plans to build a $300 million ballroom at the White House – financed by wealthy donors – continued to evoke comparisons to Marie Antoinette.

Since the Coalition’s historic election defeat in May, Rinehart has encouraged the Liberal party to stick to Trump-style policies.

In a lengthy statement to the Daily Mail in May, Rinehart said the “left-wing media” had succeeded in distancing liberals from “all things Trump.”

“This has been particularly evident this year, with the Liberals becoming known as the ‘me too’ party,” she wrote. “Trump’s policy of making Australia great, by cutting red tape, government bureaucracy and waste, and thus being able to cut taxes, too few in Australia this year to mention.

“There is no doubt that the left-wing media will now try to claim that the liberals’ defeat was because the liberal party followed Trump and became too right! The two simply don’t add up!”