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Laura Loomer vs. Pete Hegseth: Is Trump's 'biggest' supporter leaving Republican Party? What we know
Laura Loomer's vow not to vote in 2026 fueled speculation that she is leaving the GOP.
Far-right activist and staunch Trump supporter Laura Loomer unleashed a fiery social media tirade on Friday, accusing the Trump administration of handing Qatar a full military base on American soil. Her posts, which racked up millions of views, framed the move as a betrayal of "America First" principles.
Laura Loomer's explosive X rant
Laura Loomer's outburst began on Friday afternoon. In a series of posts, she lambasted the Trump administration.
"Never thought I’d see Republicans give terror financing Muslims from Qatar a MILITARY BASE on US soil so they can murder Americans... I cannot in good conscience make any excuses for the harboring of jihadis. This is where I draw the line,” Loomer wrote on X.
She added, "There isn’t a single Trump supporter who supports allowing Qatar to have a military base on US soil. I don’t know who told President Trump this was a good idea, but it has made people not want to vote. This is the type of thing I would expect from a President Ilhan Omar."
She went on to declare that she "won't be voting in 2026."
For those unversed, Loomer ran as a Republican candidate for Florida's 21st Congressional District in 2020 and 2022, losing both primaries.
Is Laura Loomer leaving the Republican Party?
Loomer's vow not to vote in 2026 fueled speculation that she is leaving the GOP. Some X users posted claims like "Loomer is exiting the Republican Party," which conservative firebrand Roger Stone retweeted with, "I hear no gnashing of teeth regarding Laura Loomer's announcement that she is leaving the party of Lincoln and Trump."
Loomer fired back at Stone, a longtime Trump ally: "What has the GOP ever done for me Roger? Nothing. What did the GOP ever do for you? They sat back & let you get raided and refused to help you when you were raided and had your home taken from you. The GOP has done nothing for me. My focus has been on the people, and MAGA."
Despite the drama, Loomer hasn't explicitly declared she is leaving the party.
Is Qatar building a military base in the US?
On Friday, US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth met with Qatar's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense, Sheikh Saoud bin Abdulrahman al-Thani, at the Pentagon.
During a joint press conference, Hegseth announced the building of a Qatari Emiri Air Force facility at the Mountain Home Air Force Base in Idaho.
"The location will host a contingent of Qatari F-15s and pilots to enhance our combined training, increase, lethality, interoperability. It’s just another example of our partnership, and I hope you know, your Excellency, that you can count on us,” Hegseth said.
He later backtracked, issuing a clarification: "The U.S. military has a long-standing partnership w/ Qatar, including today’s announced cooperation w/ F-15QA aircraft. However, to be clear, Qatar will not have their own base in the United States—nor anything like a base. We control the existing base, like we do with all partners."
