Laura Loomer sparks row with India return comments after Marco Rubio visit

A row erupted after far-right US political activist Laura Loomer said she wants to return to India following US secretary of state Marco Rubio’s recent visit to the country. Loomer triggered the backlash after posting on X: “Seeing all of ⁦Marco Rubio's photos from India makes me want to go back to India! She added: “I love India. Such a beautiful country. So glad our Secretary of State and his supermodel wife were able to visit India and meet many of the same people I met while I was there. ” She shared the post alongside a photograph of herself dressed in Indian attire. Several users revisited Loomer’s earlier controversial comments about Indians and immigration. She was accused of trying to soften her image after previously making racist remarks and offensive comments towards Indians. Loomer travelled to India in March this year, where her visit drew attention because of old social media posts in which she criticised Indians and attacked the H-1B visa programme. During appearances and media interactions in India, journalists confronted her over those remarks. She later apologised for some of the posts but continued to oppose the H-1B visa system, arguing that it allows companies in the US to hire foreign workers at lower salaries, which she claimed affects American jobs. Despite the controversy, Loomer later praised India after spending nine days in the country. She described India as “incredible” and said it could become “the next big super power”. Her comments came days after Rubio completed his first official visit to India as US secretary of state. During the trip, Rubio held talks with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar in New Delhi. The discussions were focused on trade, defence, energy cooperation and Indo-Pacific security, while both sides also discussed strengthening Quad ties and expanding bilateral economic cooperation amid ongoing geopolitical tensions and tariff disputes. Rubio also visited Kolkata, Agra and Jaipur during the trip and reportedly delivered a White House invitation from US President Donald Trump to PM Modi.