Who is Laura Loomer and why is she being blamed by some for Trump’s false claims about eating pets?

During the day Republican candidate Donald Trump made an unsubstantiated claim that Haitian immigrants in the city of Springfield, Ohio, were eating people’s pets, such as cats and dogs.
His debate opponent, Vice President Kamala Harris, openly laughed at the claim, which was dismissed as false by local authorities. Debate moderator David Muir also pushed back against the claim, acknowledging that it had been debunked.
But it begs the question: Who convinced Trump to bring this up?

Some Republicans are pointing the finger at Laura Loomer, a conservative activist who shared her theory with her 1.2 million followers on the social media platform X a day earlier.

Donald Trump’s Astonishing Claim

Trump declared a “monumental victory” over Harris on Tuesday night (Wednesday morning Australian time) during their first and likely only live presidential debate.

But the former US president is now widely criticised for spreading a range of lies, from the economy to immigration and abortion.

Perhaps most astonishing was his claim that illegal immigrants in Springfield are “eating the dogs, eating the cats, eating the pets of the people who live there.”

The rumor had already been circulating on the Internet and was promoted by Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance (his post on X has been viewed more than 11 million times) and Loomer, before Trump repeated it in the debate.

Donald Trump and Kamala Harris on a TV screen

Former US President Donald Trump’s claim that immigrants in Springfield, Ohio, ate dogs and cats prompted disbelieving laughter from his presidential debate opponent, Kamala Harris. Source: Getty / Anadolia

Who is Laura Loomer?

Loomer, a 31-year-old who calls himself an “investigative journalist,” recently joined Trump’s entourage.
Last year, she shared a video on X claiming that the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001 were an “inside job.”

In the video, Loomer claimed the attacks were related to then-US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld’s September 10, 2001 announcement that $2.3 trillion in government funds would be “lost.”

A woman wearing a striped jacket holds her phone horizontally in her hand.

Laura Loomer accompanied Donald Trump to a fire station in Lower Manhattan to commemorate September 11, despite spreading the false conspiracy theory that it was an “inside job.” Source: MONKEY / Matt Rourke

The report misinterpreted Rumsfeld’s comments about a challenge in tracking funds due to outdated technology. Moreover, it was not the first time the issue had been raised the day before 9/11.

Loomer is also a promoter of based on the belief that Trump is fighting the ‘deep state’.

Her increased presence on the Republican campaign trail comes after Trump made several staff changes in recent weeks, including bringing back veterans from his 2016 and 2020 campaigns, such as former campaign manager Corey Lewandowski.

But Loomer’s presence near the former president led to vicious attacks on Harris.
In a message to X, Loomer said the White House “will smell like curry” if Harris — who is of Indian descent — is elected.

Marjorie Taylor Greene, a far-right congresswoman from Georgia, condemned the post on Wednesday as “racist,” in a sign of division among Trump supporters.

Loomer also spread an unsubstantiated accusation that Harris wore earplugs disguised as earrings during the debate.

Is Loomer Behind the Pet Eating Lie?

There is now more attention to Loomer’s alleged role.
Because she shared unsubstantiated claims about Haitian migrants on social media, some now believe she repeated the claims while traveling with the former president on his private jet to the presidential debate in Philadelphia.
Meanwhile, the American news website Semafor quoted an anonymous person close to the Trump campaign as saying that they are “100%” concerned about Loomer’s influence on Trump.
Earlier this year, Trump suggested giving Loomer an official role in his campaign, but his aides opposed the idea.

With additional reporting from the Associated Press

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