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Fox & Friends co-anchor Brian Kilmeade appeared uneasy with the prospect that far-right extremist Laura Loomer has the ear of Donald Trump these days, explicitly saying on Friday that he doesn’t feel that Loomer should have “the credibility to pick who is on” the president’s staff.
Kilmeade’s concern with the level of influence Loomer holds over the White House comes as the “proud Islamophobe” appears to be taking credit for the president pulling the nomination of Dr. Janette Nesheiwat as surgeon general, which she described as another “scalp” she had claimed.
Nesheiwat, a former Fox News pundit, had recently seen her nomination as surgeon general come under scrutiny over reports that she embellished her medical credentials. At the same time, though, Nesheiwat had also been targeted by Loomer – a virulent anti-vaxxer and conspiracy theorist – for promoting the Covid-19 vaccines during the pandemic.
Just a day before Nesheiwat was scheduled to appear before a Senate confirmation hearing, Trump announced that he was withdrawing her nomination and replacing her with “wellness influencer” Casey Means, a close ally of HHS chief Robert F. Kennedy Jr., whom Trump boasted has “impeccable ‘MAHA’ credentials.” Means, who claims she now practices “functional medicine,” currently doesn’t have an active medical license.
During Friday’s broadcast of the president’s favorite morning talk show, Kilmeade appeared to be sending Trump a message that he shouldn’t be relying on Loomer to make decisions on who should or shouldn’t be serving in the administration.
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Discussing Fox News anchor Bret Baier’s interview with Kennedy and other HHS officials, which featured the HHS secretary dodging a question on his former running mate’s claims that someone is “controlling his decisions,” Kilmeade then brought up Trump switching up his pick for the nation’s top doctor.
“I guess the surgeon general is not there yet,” he declared. “Casey Means, she's gonna get the job, she's gonna fit right in. Dr. Nesheiwat is gonna be joining that team, and I think she is, I don't know, for some reason she was pulled from surgeon general.”
Adding that he’s glad his former Fox News colleague is still “gonna be involved,” Kilmeade then said he hoped Nesheiwat’s nomination “wasn't pulled because of Laura Loomer” as she “seems to be taking a bow of getting a scalp and pushing somebody away from the Trump administration.”
In the end, the Trump-boosting Fox host wanted it known that he didn’t believe that Loomer should be someone the administration, or the president himself, takes seriously.
“I just don't think she should be having the credibility to pick who's on staff,” he concluded.
Besides Nesheiwat, whom Loomer had targeted for urging people to get vaccinated during the coronavirus pandemic, the self-described “investigative journalist” had also recently pushed the White House to clear house at the National Security Council following the Signalgate scandal. Shortly after she visited the Oval Office, in which she presented her research showing several staffers were “disloyal’ to Trump, a “bloodbath” took place on the council and multiple members were fired.
While national security adviser Mike Waltz and his deputy Alex Wong were initially spared, Loomer took credit for their “scalps” after the president removed both from their roles earlier this month. Waltz, who created the infamous Signal chat that mistakenly added The Atlantic’s Jeffrey Goldberg and included sensitive war plans being shared, has since been nominated to be the United States ambassador to the United Nations.
Though Loomer crowed about Nesheiwat being withdrawn as the surgeon general nominee, she has also loudly complained about Means being named in her place.
“How is the top doctor in the U.S. supposed to give medical guidance and advice to the nation when she doesn't even have an active medical license in the state where she allegedly practiced medicine?” Loomer griped on X. “Does Casey Means even have an active medical license in any state?? This is so embarrassing for the Trump administration.”
She added: “It is worth noting that Casey Means doesn't have a surgical residency, and isn't a surgeon. The term Surgeon General is interesting given the fact that there is no requirement to be a Surgeon to be Surgeon General. Turns out you can be a social media influencer and become Surgeon General.”
