Laura Loomer, a right-wing activist who posted last year that 9/11 was an “inside job,” joined Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump in New York and Pennsylvania on Wednesday as he commemorated the anniversary of the attacks.
The 31-year-old provocateur and influencer posted photos from ground zero and shared a video of Trump talking with firefighters in Lower Manhattan on Wednesday morning, writing, “They were thrilled to see him.” She also accompanied the former president to Shanksville, Pennsylvania, where one of the planes crashed 23 years ago after crew members and passengers fought back against the hijackers.
Loomer said in a text message to The Associated Press that she doesn’t work for the Trump campaign and that she was “invited as a guest.” She did not respond to questions about her past statements about 9/11.
The Trump campaign responded with a statement from an unnamed campaign official. “Today, President Trump put politics aside and stood beside Kamala Harris and Joe Biden to honor those who lost their lives during the worst terrorist attack in our nation’s history. The day wasn’t about anyone other than the souls who are no longer with us, their families, and the heroes who courageously stepped up to save their fellow Americans on that fateful day,” it read.
Loomer was also spotted departing Trump’s plane when he landed in Philadelphia for Tuesday’s debate.
Trump has a long history of elevating and associating with people who trade in falsehoods and conspiracy theories, and he regularly amplifies posts on his social media site shared by those like Loomer, who promote QAnon, an apocalyptic and convoluted conspiracy theory centered on the belief that Trump is fighting the “deep state.” During the debate, Trump pushed baseless claims about migrants stealing and eating cats and dogs and later defended his comments by saying he was repeating things he’d seen on TV.
