The woman who said the White House would “smell like curry” if Kamala Harris won just apologised — on a stage at the Laura Loomer India Today Conclave appearance in New Delhi, to an audience of Indians.
The apology was partial. The deflection was total.
What Happened at India Today Conclave 2026
Laura Loomer — far-right activist, Trump ally, and self-described frequent communicator with the US president — faced immediate confrontation on Saturday. Within minutes, veteran journalist Rajdeep Sardesai confronted her with her own posts: the curry remark, the “third-world invaders from India” line, and tweets that used crude stereotypes to question the intellectual abilities and hygiene of Indian people.
Loomer’s response: “I shouldn’t have said some of the things that I said… and I apologise if my remarks offended people.”
Note the “if.” Note the “some.”
The Part She Wouldn’t Budge On
Here’s where it gets more instructive than offensive. Loomer refused to apologise for opposing the H-1B visa programme, at the heart of the H-1B visa debate India watches closely. “My job is to stand up for American interests,” she said, framing the entire immigration system as one that has been “exploited and abused.”
That distinction — regret for the racism, zero regret for the policy — is the quiet part of the MAGA movement’s relationship with India said loud. India is a strategic partner, Indian Americans are a valuable voting bloc, but Indian workers competing for American jobs? That’s a line the populist right won’t cross.
Why India Today Invited Her at All
That question consumed Indian social media before Loomer even landed. Critics called it platforming bigotry for clicks. Defenders argued sunlight is the best disinfectant — and Sardesai’s confrontation, which went viral, arguably proved them right, sparking the broader India Today Conclave 2026 controversy.
But the deeper issue isn’t one panel. It’s that a person with direct access to the US president holds views that are simultaneously pro-India-as-ally and anti-Indian-as-people. That contradiction isn’t going away — it’s the foundation of the current India-US equation.
The Laura Loomer apology India received was qualified. At the India Today Conclave, she said sorry for the slurs. But on H-1B visas? She didn’t budge. The policy didn’t budge in Washington either.