(New York) Red and white megaphone in hand, dark glasses on her nose, Laura Loomer harangues the “media beasts” – her expression to describe the journalists who surround her outside the court where is to open the trial of Donald Trump, on this Monday in mid-March.
The far-right influencer promises to return to the same place every day of the trial to repeat the same message that adorns her t-shirt, until the “‘fake media’ publishes the truth”.
“Donald Trump did nothing wrong,” she insists.
The Trumpist pasionaria goes on to accuse, among other things, the wife of Juan Merchan, the judge in charge of the trial, of working “literally” for the Attorney General of the State of New York, Letitia James.
“Tell me this isn’t a witch hunt. How is this fair to Donald Trump? », she asks.
During the dinner hour, Donald Trump will post a video of the scene on Truth Social. Analysts will immediately wonder if he has just violated once again the gag order imposed on him by Judge Merchan and which prohibits him in particular from attacking members of the magistrate’s family.
This order will be at the heart of a hearing which is to take place before Judge Merchan on Tuesday, the day after the opening statements of Donald Trump’s trial. It carries a fine and a prison sentence of up to 30 days.
And its enlargement, the 1er last April, is largely due to Laura Loomer, whose presence in Donald Trump’s orbit worries some of his advisors. Who is she exactly?
“Proud Islamophobe”
Born 30 years ago into a Jewish family in Florida, this protégé of Roger Stone, long-time confidant of Donald Trump, has already described herself as a “proud Islamophobe”. In July 2017, she rejoiced on Twitter at the drowning of more than 2,000 migrants, most of them Muslims, who were trying to cross the Mediterranean.
A few months later, she made comments on the same social network about Muslim drivers which resulted in her being banned for life from the ride-sharing services Uber and Lyft. PayPal, Venmo, Facebook and Twitter have also declared her persona non grata.
Reinstated by X, successor to Twitter, Laura Loomer renounced her label as an Islamophobe. But she did not deny her connections with white nationalism. “Yes, I’m for white nationalism,” she said during a 2017 podcast.
But there’s a difference between white nationalism and white supremacism, right? And many liberals and left-wing globalist Marxist Jews don’t understand it. This country was built as a white Judeo-Christian ethno-state, essentially. Over time, immigration and all these calls for diversity begin to destroy this country.
Laura Loomer
THE New York Times brought out this statement in April 2023 in an article on Donald Trump’s desire to give Laura Loomer an official role in his presidential campaign. This hiring project was blocked by the co-director of the campaign, according to the Axios website.
But Donald Trump continued to rely on Laura Loomer, rebroadcasting her incessant videos and messages on Truth Social attacking his favorite targets, from Ron DeSantis to Nikki Haley to migrants.
PHOTO NICOLE CRAINE, THE NEW YORK TIMES ARCHIVES
Laura Loomer, outside the Fulton County Jail in Georgia, August 24, 2023
In August 2023, he cemented his relationship with the Great Replacement conspiracy theorist by hosting him at his golf club in Bedminster, New Jersey. “You work hard and you are a woman of opinion, I have to tell you, and I like that,” he declared to his guest, who did not fail to broadcast the video of his meeting with Donald Trump on X.
At a rally held on the eve of the Iowa caucuses last January, Donald Trump brought it home by noting the presence of Laura Loomer among the dignitaries present.
“You want her on your side,” he said.
On his side
And Laura Loomer is still on Donald Trump’s side in his legal battle in New York. She thus supported the defendant in his efforts to call into question the impartiality of Judge Merchan. She took the latter by surprise, accusing her daughter, Loren Merchan, a Democratic consultant, of having published on her X account an image showing the former president behind bars. The court concluded that this was an account falsely attributed to Loren Merchan.
PHOTO SETH WENIG, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
Judge Juan Merchan
Donald Trump nevertheless relayed Laura Loomer’s allegation on Truth Social, prompting Judge Merchan to extend his gag order. Since 1er April, the former president is barred not only from attacking witnesses, jurors and prosecutors involved in his trial, but also family members of Manhattan judge and prosecutor Alvin Bragg.
At Tuesday’s hearing, his lawyers will have to convince Judge Merchan that he did not knowingly violate his gag order in at least ten cases detailed by the Manhattan district attorney’s office.
But Donald Trump shouldn’t fear being sent to prison, according to Laura Loomer. In a post on the question of his criminal immunity.
“I want them to stop Donald Trump so we can watch him raise $100 million overnight and win the election handily,” she wrote on X.
In November 2023, the same woman said she would happily serve as presidential spokesperson after Donald Trump returns to the White House.