Overview
- Laura Loomer has been credentialed to cover the Defense Department, according to reporting that cites a person familiar with the matter first noted by The Washington Post.
- The move follows a new Pentagon media policy that bars reporters from soliciting information without prior authorization, which the Pentagon Press Association called an unprecedented message of intimidation.
- Virtually all mainstream outlets covering the Pentagon turned in their badges rather than sign the policy, with The Washington Post, the New York Times, CNN, and Fox News among those refusing while One America News agreed to sign.
- The department has assembled a new in-person press corps made up largely of far-right publications and online influencers, including the Gateway Pundit, the Post Millennial, and LindellTV.
- Loomer is a Trump-aligned activist who has met the president multiple times, has publicly advocated for the ouster of officials such as Gen. Timothy Haugh, and has criticized Pentagon figures including Col. Earl G. Matthews and Army Secretary Dan Driscoll.