Sarah Matthews, a former spokesperson for former President Trump, warned that if he is reelected, his administration would be staffed with the “Laura Loomers of the world.”
Matthews joined MSNBC’s Jen Psaki on Sunday for “Inside with Jen Psaki,” where she weighed in on the growing concern about Trump’s connection to Loomer, a former congressional candidate with a history of anti-Muslim and racist comments.
“I would imagine maybe she wants to be White House Press Secretary … and that is what is most concerning to me, because I’ve talked about this threat of ‘who will be staffing a second administration?’” Matthews said.
“I like to think that during the first administration, you had people of good character who wanted to staff him and would push back on him, but in a second administration, you’re going to get the Laura Loomers of the world, who are in his ear, who are the ones helping run the country,” she continued.
Loomer has been thrust into the spotlight after posting online that if Vice President Harris wins the election, “the White House will smell like curry,” among other racist comments about Harris’s Indian heritage.
Her visible presence alongside Trump in recent days has sparked questions about her influence over his campaign. On Tuesday, she flew on Trump’s plane to Philadelphia ahead of the presidential debate.
Loomer does not have an official role with Trump’s campaign. The former president said he does not agree with the statements made by Loomer, though in the past he has invoked Harris’s race.
A group of Republican lawmakers released a joint statement this weekend denouncing Loomer’s comments. They are attempting to separate Trump’s campaign from her remarks.
Matthews argued that “it’s terrifying” to think that if Trump is reelected, he could place someone like Loomer in a position of power. He would create a staff of “yes men and women,” unlike his former administration with John Kelly and Mark Esper, who pushed back on Trump’s ideas, she said.
“This is the type of person who could potentially have the ear of the leader of the free world, someone who traffics in conspiracy theories, says racist, awful, vile things, and it makes me nervous about what a potential staff for a second Trump term could look like,” she said.
