Right-wing extremist Laura Loomer. (Photo by Julia Beverly/Getty Images)
On Thursday afternoon, Laura Loomer logged on to X and declared victory. “SCALP,” she wrote in all caps, followed soon after by another post: “VETTING MATTERS.” It wasn’t subtle. Loomer—a far-right activist, media personality, and self-proclaimed Islamophobe—was taking credit for the ouster of Mike Waltz as Donald Trump’s national security adviser. And whether or not she was the only factor behind Waltz’s reassignment, her glee wasn’t unwarranted.
Earlier in the day, Trump had removed Waltz from his West Wing post in a dramatic reshuffle that will see him shipped over to the United Nations as ambassador. In the interim, Trump has asked Secretary of State Marco Rubio to assume the additional title of interim national security adviser—a rare consolidation of two major foreign policy roles. Alex Wong, Waltz’s deputy and a seasoned government hand, is also out. Loomer had repeatedly targeted him on X, often in racialized terms, and suggested that he was sympathetic to China’s interests.
In any case, the most telling detail of the day was the fact that Loomer…
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