Far-right provocateur Laura Loomer claims Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has turned to her for help rooting out disloyal officials at the Pentagon.
Loomer, an extremist and conspiracy theorist, made the claim in an interview with CNN which detailed how her targeted campaigns have led to the firing of multiple officials accused of not supporting President Donald Trump’s agenda.
An analysis by the Daily Beast found that at least 16 people have been ousted following Loomer’s interventions. Chief Pentagon spokesperson Sean Parnell confirmed to the Daily Beast that Hegseth and Loomer had spoken, adding that the defense secretary “appreciates Laura Loomer’s outside advocacy.”
“Personnel is policy, and Laura has taken that motto to heart. At the Department of Defense, we will never stop working to deliver on the President’s America First agenda,” Parnell said. “Qualified individuals who love our country and support the Administration’s priorities will continue to be integral to our efforts.”
Hegseth’s tenure as defense secretary has been plagued with scandals and problems, including his decision to fire three Pentagon aides while accusing them of leaking from the department.
Loomer, an increasingly influential figure in Trump’s ear, did not disclose who her latest “scalp” could be within the Pentagon. She recently launched an anonymous tip line for help in gathering information on officials who fail her MAGA loyalty test, and expects to purge “hundreds” more.
Loomer claimed to CNN she has been inundated with tips, including those from within the Trump administration. She added that her pressure campaign may even result in a high-profile “scalp” from within Trump’s Cabinet.
“I’m not blaming Trump, but people will probably start to blame him if he doesn’t use these opportunities to fire some Cabinet members,” Loomer told CNN.
Loomer’s rise from controversial fringe figure to MAGA enforcer could be seen in the removal of Dr. Vinay Prasad as the top vaccine official at the FDA after just three months into the job.
Loomer spent several days mounting a pressure campaign on Prasad, including accusing him of being a progressive and unearthing a 2021 audio clip of Prasad joking that he stabs a voodoo doll to “curse” Trump, before he was eventually let go.
Trump even reportedly ignored desperate pleas from Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and FDA Commissioner Marty Makary not to remove Prasad, and instead backed Loomer’s judgement.
Trump showed his support for the “very nice” Loomer on Sunday when asked by reporters how much influence she has over the president.
“I know she’s known as ‘radical right,’ but I think Laura Loomer is a very nice person,” he said. “She’s a patriot… and she doesn’t like things going on that she thinks are bad for the country. I like her.”
In a statement to CNN, White House spokesman Kush Desai added: “It is not only appropriate, but critical for the Administration to recruit the most qualified and experienced staffers who are totally aligned with President Trump’s agenda to Make America Great Again.”
The White House and Loomer did not immediately respond to the Daily Beast’s request for comment.
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