How Laura Loomer Became One of the Most Feared People in Washington
POWER PLAYER
That she wields her power from outside the White House is yet another feature of Trump’s presidency that we have simply never seen before in the office.
A few years ago, Laura Loomer was a political gadfly—she commanded a following among the very online right, but beyond that world was someone of little impact or influence. Today? Loomer is the de facto personnel director at the White House. She has the ear of President Trump. And that when she targets someone for supposed disloyalty, more often than not that person’s time in the Trump administration is over. (To be clear, the White House doesn’t acknowledge that Loomer’s opposition research was the reason behind anyone’s ouster.) Loomer, undoubtedly, has her enemies in the White House. As the New York Timeshas noted, she has been blocked from serving Trump in an official capacity—not once but twice. And yet, she has persisted. She now functions, effectively, as the president’s loyalty enforcer. Trump likes people who are loyal to him—no matter what else they say or do. And Loomer has repeatedly made clear that he is her top priority. (“President Trump comes first,” she told the Times she has even told her boyfriend.) For Trump, that’s enough—will it be for her too?