It’s impossible, unproductive and, frankly, tedious to respond to every Trump outrage. So I try to pick my shots and spare readers what would otherwise be an unbearable barrage. But the moment has arrived again — this time in the repulsive form of Laura Loomer, the far-right bigot, conspiracy theorist and, in recent days, campaign trail companion of the former president.
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As with other Trump provocations — abjuring the intention to be a dictator “except for day one”; calling for the “termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution” to deal with supposed election fraud; praising those charged in the Jan. 6 insurrection as “hostages” — his association with Loomer is not an aberration but an illustration. It demonstrates who Donald Trump is and underscores the danger he poses.
Loomer is no outlier in Trumpworld. Rather, she is a particularly pungent example of the types of people with whom Trump has chosen to ally himself, from Stephen K. Bannon to Roger Stone to Stephen Miller. This is a man who dined at Mar-a-Lago with white nationalist and Holocaust denier Nick Fuentes, whom Trump described as “a guest whom I had never met and knew nothing about.”
Loomer, though, might take the cake. The 31-year-old twice-failed congressional candidate, professional provocateur and self-described “investigative journalist” has proclaimed herself a “#ProudIslamophobe,” termed Islam a “cancer on society” and said “Muslims should not be allowed to seek positions of political office in this country.” She posted a video on X that labeled 9/11 an “Inside Job,” although she didn’t use the phrase herself. She responded to a news story about the drowning deaths of 2,000 migrants with a hand clap emoji and the words “Good. … Here’s to 2,000 more.”
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How extreme is Loomer? So extreme that Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) described her as “mentally unstable and a documented liar” and spoke with Trump about Loomer. (Perhaps proving Greene’s point, Loomer responded with a post comparing Greene to “a hooker” who “sells herself to the highest bidder.”) Loomer’s statements are “beyond disturbing,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) told The Post.
“Laura Loomer is a crazy conspiracy theorist who regularly utters disgusting garbage intended to divide Republicans. A DNC plant couldn’t do a better job than she is doing to hurt President Trump’s chances of winning reelection. Enough,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) wrote on social media Friday. The Wall Street Journal editorialized to express its dismay about Trump’s “Loomer Tunes,” wondering, “Is he trying to lose the election?”
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And for good reason. Because Loomer’s extremism — her breathtaking offensiveness and undisguised racism — is not an artifact of the past. It’s in the present tense. “If @KamalaHarris wins, the White House will smell like curry & White House speeches will be facilitated via a call center and the American people will only be able to convey their feedback through a customer satisfaction survey at the end of the call that nobody will understand,” Loomer posted on X this month. (She later said that was a joke. Not laughing.)
In a July post, she labeled Harris “a drug using prostitute.” Urging Republicans to go after Harris for not having biological children, the childless Loomer added: “I’m willing to bet she’s had so many abortions that she damaged her uterus. … Republicans need to run with this messaging and ask why a woman with no kids of her own and just a scarred up uterus is so obsessed with wanting to kill your babies.”
Loomer’s extremism isn’t limited to going after Harris. On a podcast in June about whether Democrats should be prosecuted and jailed if Trump wins the election, Loomer interjected, “Not just jailed, they should get the death penalty. You know, we actually used to have the punishment for treason in this country.”
Any sane politician — any decent human being, for that matter — would stay as far away from a person like this as possible. Not Trump. There was Loomer on the plane with him Tuesday en route to his debate with Harris. There was Loomer by his side again the next day, at events in New York and Pennsylvania to commemorate the attack.
Hence the Greene-Graham-Tillis-WSJ agita. Hence the nascent efforts by Trump — pretty halfhearted so far — to distance himself from Loomer. Trump on Friday described Loomer as “a free spirit” who “has to say what she wants.”
He followed up with a Truth Social post emphasizing that Loomer “doesn’t work for the Campaign.” (Actually, the Bulwark reported, Trump offered her a job but “internal critics” of Loomer persuaded him to withdraw the offer.) “I disagree with the statements she made,” Trump wrote, “but, like the many millions of people who support me, she is tired of watching the Radical Left Marxists and Fascists violently attack and smear me, even to the point of doing anything to stop their Political Opponent, ME!” Okay, what statements exactly? And why associate with her in any way?
On that score, a video Loomer filmed last month with Trump at his Bedminster, N.J., country club offers a revealing glimpse into why Trump likes having her around. “You are a very opinionated lady, I have to tell you that,” Trump says to Loomer, “and in my opinion, I like that.” For Trump, all sins can be forgiven for those who heap enough praise on him. But also, for him, Loomer’s offensiveness isn’t a bug, it’s a feature.
All of which is to say, the real problem here isn’t Laura Loomer. It’s Donald Trump. A man who invites this woman on his plane is not a man we should allow back inside the White House.
Sign up for Shifts, an illustrated newsletter series about the future of work
As with other Trump provocations — abjuring the intention to be a dictator “except for day one”; calling for the “termination of all rules, regulations, and articles, even those found in the Constitution” to deal with supposed election fraud; praising those charged in the Jan. 6 insurrection as “hostages” — his association with Loomer is not an aberration but an illustration. It demonstrates who Donald Trump is and underscores the danger he poses.
Loomer is no outlier in Trumpworld. Rather, she is a particularly pungent example of the types of people with whom Trump has chosen to ally himself, from Stephen K. Bannon to Roger Stone to Stephen Miller. This is a man who dined at Mar-a-Lago with white nationalist and Holocaust denier Nick Fuentes, whom Trump described as “a guest whom I had never met and knew nothing about.”
Loomer, though, might take the cake. The 31-year-old twice-failed congressional candidate, professional provocateur and self-described “investigative journalist” has proclaimed herself a “#ProudIslamophobe,” termed Islam a “cancer on society” and said “Muslims should not be allowed to seek positions of political office in this country.” She posted a video on X that labeled 9/11 an “Inside Job,” although she didn’t use the phrase herself. She responded to a news story about the drowning deaths of 2,000 migrants with a hand clap emoji and the words “Good. … Here’s to 2,000 more.”
Follow Ruth Marcus
How extreme is Loomer? So extreme that Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) described her as “mentally unstable and a documented liar” and spoke with Trump about Loomer. (Perhaps proving Greene’s point, Loomer responded with a post comparing Greene to “a hooker” who “sells herself to the highest bidder.”) Loomer’s statements are “beyond disturbing,” Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) told The Post.
“Laura Loomer is a crazy conspiracy theorist who regularly utters disgusting garbage intended to divide Republicans. A DNC plant couldn’t do a better job than she is doing to hurt President Trump’s chances of winning reelection. Enough,” Sen. Thom Tillis (R-N.C.) wrote on social media Friday. The Wall Street Journal editorialized to express its dismay about Trump’s “Loomer Tunes,” wondering, “Is he trying to lose the election?”
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And for good reason. Because Loomer’s extremism — her breathtaking offensiveness and undisguised racism — is not an artifact of the past. It’s in the present tense. “If @KamalaHarris wins, the White House will smell like curry & White House speeches will be facilitated via a call center and the American people will only be able to convey their feedback through a customer satisfaction survey at the end of the call that nobody will understand,” Loomer posted on X this month. (She later said that was a joke. Not laughing.)
In a July post, she labeled Harris “a drug using prostitute.” Urging Republicans to go after Harris for not having biological children, the childless Loomer added: “I’m willing to bet she’s had so many abortions that she damaged her uterus. … Republicans need to run with this messaging and ask why a woman with no kids of her own and just a scarred up uterus is so obsessed with wanting to kill your babies.”
Loomer’s extremism isn’t limited to going after Harris. On a podcast in June about whether Democrats should be prosecuted and jailed if Trump wins the election, Loomer interjected, “Not just jailed, they should get the death penalty. You know, we actually used to have the punishment for treason in this country.”
Any sane politician — any decent human being, for that matter — would stay as far away from a person like this as possible. Not Trump. There was Loomer on the plane with him Tuesday en route to his debate with Harris. There was Loomer by his side again the next day, at events in New York and Pennsylvania to commemorate the attack.
Hence the Greene-Graham-Tillis-WSJ agita. Hence the nascent efforts by Trump — pretty halfhearted so far — to distance himself from Loomer. Trump on Friday described Loomer as “a free spirit” who “has to say what she wants.”
He followed up with a Truth Social post emphasizing that Loomer “doesn’t work for the Campaign.” (Actually, the Bulwark reported, Trump offered her a job but “internal critics” of Loomer persuaded him to withdraw the offer.) “I disagree with the statements she made,” Trump wrote, “but, like the many millions of people who support me, she is tired of watching the Radical Left Marxists and Fascists violently attack and smear me, even to the point of doing anything to stop their Political Opponent, ME!” Okay, what statements exactly? And why associate with her in any way?
On that score, a video Loomer filmed last month with Trump at his Bedminster, N.J., country club offers a revealing glimpse into why Trump likes having her around. “You are a very opinionated lady, I have to tell you that,” Trump says to Loomer, “and in my opinion, I like that.” For Trump, all sins can be forgiven for those who heap enough praise on him. But also, for him, Loomer’s offensiveness isn’t a bug, it’s a feature.
All of which is to say, the real problem here isn’t Laura Loomer. It’s Donald Trump. A man who invites this woman on his plane is not a man we should allow back inside the White House.
