Far-right activist Laura Loomer is flexing her influence with the White House as she racks up policy and personnel wins from the outside.
The State Department’s decision to halt the issuance of visitor visas to people from Gaza marked the latest instance of Loomer seeing results for a cause she has championed using her large social media following and connections with the administration.
Loomer is an outspoken and controversial supporter of President Trump. And while she has no official role with the government, she has gained an audience with both Trump and Vice President Vance in recent months and has used her megaphone to influence key decisions.
White House spokespeople have said Loomer is not advising the administration, even informally. Trump has said he “sometimes” listens to Loomer’s recommendations.
“Laura Loomer is a great patriot. She’s a very strong person,” Trump told reporters of Loomer in April after meeting with her at the White House.
Sources close to the White House told The Hill that some aides have pushed back on Loomer’s presence in Trump’s orbit, dating back to the 2024 campaign, when the president wanted to offer her a job. Top Trump allies on Capitol Hill such as Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene (R-Ga.) and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) have expressed their displeasure with Loomer.
Loomer has repeatedly expressed frustration that the White House has not invited her to sit in the “new media” seat in the briefing room, a spot given to other right-wing influencers in recent months.
“I was supposed to work for Trump, but we all know that’s not happening despite his orders to staff to onboard me 4 times,” Loomer posted on the social platform X on Tuesday, responding to a story in The Free Press that said some White House officials were suspicious of her motives.
“Despite the fact that I break more stories than any joker in the ‘New Media’ seat, I can’t hear back from anyone inside the White House about my God damn press pass unless they text me with fake pleasantries asking me to delete a tweet about their friends who they so desperately want me to believe are ‘good people,’” she added.
Despite some roadblocks thrown up by Trump allies, a slew of episodes during the second Trump administration have proven the extent of Loomer’s influence
The State Department said Saturday it was pausing visitor visas for those coming from Gaza, which has been devastated by the ongoing war between Israel and Hamas. Outside groups have declared a humanitarian crisis, and tens of thousands have been killed in the fighting, including many women and children.
The announcement followed lobbying from Loomer, who specifically targeted the nonprofit group HEAL Palestine, which assists with evacuating injured children from Gaza to the United States for care. Loomer decried the flights as a “national security threat” and went on to call for the Trump administration to add Gaza to its travel ban and deport those from the enclave who entered the country in recent years.
The New York Times reported that Loomer spoke to Secretary of State Marco Rubio by phone to raise concerns about the issue, a conversation that preceded a State Department announcement halting the visas.
Asked about what role Loomer played in the decision, the State Department referred The Hill to Rubio’s comments to “Face The Nation” in which he broadly defended the move.
“There is evidence that’s been presented to us by numerous congressional offices that some of the organizations bragging about and involved in acquiring these visas have strong links to terrorist groups like Hamas, and so we are not going to be in partnership with groups that are friendly with Hamas,” Rubio said.
Loomer has a long history of anti-Muslim activism and has previously declared herself a “proud” Islamophobe. She has previously described Islam as a “cancer” and was banned from X, known as Twitter at the time, after a series of anti-Muslim posts. She was reinstated when Elon Musk bought the platform.
While some White House officials and Trump allies view Loomer as a toxic presence, the visa issue is far from the first time she has proven her sway within the president’s circle. Loomer has devoted significant time and energy in recent months to identifying Trump administration officials she deems insufficiently loyal to the president and his agenda.
The president met with Loomer in the Oval Office in April, where she raised concerns about the vetting of certain staff on the National Security Council. Following that meeting, three senior officials and two lower-level staffers on the council were pushed out.
Much of her focus has been on the Health and Human Services Department. She targeted Trump’s original pick for surgeon general, as well as his replacement choice after withdrawing his first nominee.
Loomer pressed for the firing of Vinay Prasad as the Food and Drug Administration’s (FDA) top vaccine regulator, a push that was initially successful before White House officials and Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. intervened to get Prasad’s job back.
Kennedy has also been a target of Loomer’s in recent days.
Loomer had gone after Stefanie Spear, a top aide to Kennedy, accusing her of laying the groundwork for Kennedy to run for president in 2028.
Loomer’s attacks were potent enough that Kennedy felt the need to respond on X last week, accusing the “swamp” of “pushing the flat-out lie that I’m running for president in 2028.”
“Let me be clear: I am not running for president in 2028,” Kennedy wrote.
“My loyalty is to President Trump and the mission we’ve started,” Kennedy added. “Their attacks on my staff, especially Stefanie Spear — a fierce, loyal warrior for MAHA who proudly serves in the Trump Administration and works every day to advance President Trump’s vision for a healthier, stronger America — are proof we’re over the target.”
Loomer has indicated she has no plans to back off her attacks on those she deems insufficiently loyal to Trump and his agenda.
“I’m not stopping,” Loomer posted on X on Sunday. “I’m only going to intensify.”
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