Labrador attends Trump victory gala

Idaho Attorney General Raúl Labrador attended a victory gala for President-elect Donald Trump in Florida on Thursday.

The attorney general was an Idaho face at the conservative star-studded, black-tie event held at Trump’s private resort and home base, Mar-a-Lago.

Other guests at the America First Policy Institute Gala included House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana; Argentina’s President Javier Milei; and newly chosen nominees for Trump’s cabinet and administration.

That included North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum, Trump’s pick for interior secretary; former presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., announced as his pick for health and human services secretary; former U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, Trump’s choice as attorney general; and “Department of Government Efficiency” picks Elon Musk and Vivek Ramaswamy. Cabinet picks require U.S. Senate confirmation.

The America First Policy Institute is a Texas-based Republican think tank that quickly grew influence in national politics and is stacked with Trump loyalists who are likely to staff and influence policy for the incoming administration.

“Dinner with President Trump!” Labrador posted on X on Thursday night, along with a photo of himself in a tuxedo at the event, which hosted Trump’s first public speech since winning the Nov. 5 election.

Labrador posted another photo of himself at the event with Milei on Friday.

“He’s fighting socialism and wokeism in the Southern Hemisphere,” Labrador wrote. “Wished him much success.”

Since becoming president last year of the South American country that has been mired in an economic crisis, Milei has aggressively slashed government programs and spending, cutting gender equity programs and government ministries and firing government employees.

Labrador’s spokesperson Dan Estes did not respond to questions about Labrador’s trip to Florida. Labrador, who was critical of Trump during the 2016 Republican primary but later campaigned for him, did not receive his endorsement when he ran for Idaho governor in 2018 against Gov. Brad Little, according to Boise State Public Radio.

During a Trump rally in New York in late October, a comedian opening the event drew condemnation after he joked that Puerto Rico is a “floating island of garbage.”

On Halloween, Labrador, who was born in Puerto Rico, posted another avowal of his loyalty to the incoming president: a photo of himself wearing a plastic trash bag and a Make America Great Again hat. “Happy Halloween to everyone from this Puerto Rican Trump voter,” he posted on X.

Ian Max Stevenson covers state politics and climate change at the Idaho Statesman.