Trump Threatens Rosie O’Donnell’s Citizenship, Sparks Outcry and Epstein Connections
Rosie O’Donnell, the comedian and actor, has publicly responded to former President Donald Trump’s threat to revoke her U.S. citizenship, reigniting a long-standing feud between the two New York natives. The escalating conflict comes as Trump faces renewed scrutiny over his past associations with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein and his administration’s handling of related documents.
On Saturday, hours after Trump’s announcement on his Truth Social platform, O’Donnell shared a pointed image on Instagram depicting Trump alongside Epstein. This move underscores a growing public demand for the full release of the Epstein files, a matter Trump appeared open to addressing during his campaign.
O’Donnell’s accompanying caption delivered a scathing rebuke: “I’m everything you fear. A loud woman, a queer woman, a mother who tells the truth, an American who got out of the country before you set it ablaze. You are everything that is wrong with America—and I’m everything you hate about what’s still right with it.” She concluded with a defiant challenge, referencing the villainous King Joffrey from Game of Thrones: “You want to revoke my citizenship? Go ahead and try, King Joffrey with a tangerine spray tan.”
Expanding on her response during an appearance on Ireland’s RTÉ Radio 1’s Sunday with Miriam program, O’Donnell stated, “I reacted with a little post that I jotted off in five minutes, and that’s been getting a lot of attention online.” She reiterated her firm opposition to Trump’s policies and rhetoric, declaring, “I am very proud to be opposed to every single thing he says and does and represents.”
Trump’s threat, delivered to his over 10 million followers on Truth Social, claimed O’Donnell “is not in the best interests” of the U.S. and labeled her “a threat to humanity,” suggesting she “should remain in the wonderful country of Ireland, if they want her.” This action coincides with the Trump administration’s ongoing efforts to challenge birthright citizenship laws. A federal judge recently issued a temporary nationwide block on Trump’s order seeking to end birthright citizenship on Thursday.
Legal experts contend that a 1967 Supreme Court ruling effectively prevents the U.S. government from revoking the citizenship of a native-born citizen under the Fourteenth Amendment. However, Trump has recently threatened similar action against Elon Musk, born in South Africa, and Zohran Mamdani, a New York City mayoral candidate born in Uganda. The threat against O’Donnell carries particular weight due to the pair’s deeply personal and public history.
The animosity dates back to 2006, when O’Donnell, then a panelist on The View, publicly criticized Trump regarding a press conference for the Miss USA contest, which he co-owned. Trump retaliated during a celebrity edition of The Apprentice, repeatedly calling O’Donnell “disgusting” during a boardroom meeting. He revisited the conflict during his 2016 presidential campaign, stating in a debate with Hillary Clinton, “Rosie O’Donnell—I said very tough things to her, and I think everybody would agree that she deserves it and nobody feels sorry for her.” O’Donnell responded at the time, predicting Trump “will never be President” and referring to him as an “orange an-s.”
O’Donnell’s decision to highlight Trump’s association with Epstein is particularly timely. On Saturday, Trump defended Attorney General Pam Bondi amid criticism for her handling of the Epstein files. Calls for the release of a supposed “client list” linked to Epstein have intensified, with previous releases of documents being heavily redacted and offering limited new information.
“What’s going on with my ‘boys’ and, in some cases, ‘gals?’ They’re all going after Attorney General Pam Bondi, who is doing a FANTASTIC JOB!” Trump posted on Truth Social. He continued, “We’re on one team, MAGA, and I don’t like what’s happening. We have a PERFECT Administration, THE TALK OF THE WORLD, and ‘selfish people’ are trying to hurt it, all over a guy who never dies, Jeffrey Epstein. For years, it’s Epstein, over and over again.” He urged his followers to move past the issue, claiming, “One year ago our country was dead, now it’s the hottest country anywhere in the world. Let’s keep it that way, and not waste time and energy on Jeffrey Epstein, somebody that nobody cares about.”
Trump’s comments followed the release of a Justice Department and FBI memo reviewing the Epstein investigation. The memo concluded there was no evidence Epstein maintained a “client list” or was murdered, and that “no credible evidence [was] found that Epstein blackmailed prominent individuals as part of his actions.”
The renewed focus on Epstein is fueled, in part, by allegations made by Elon Musk, who claimed in a now-deleted social media post that Trump is named in the Epstein files. “That is the real reason they have not been made public,” Musk asserted in early June, without providing supporting evidence.
Trump’s connection to Epstein dates back to at least 2002, when he described Epstein as “a lot of fun to be with” in an interview with New York magazine, adding, “It is even said that he likes beautiful women as much as I do, and many of them are on the younger side.” Video footage from 1992, released by NBC News’ TODAY in July 2019, showed Trump hosting Epstein at his Mar-a-Lago estate. Following Epstein’s 2019 arrest on federal sex trafficking charges, Trump publicly distanced himself, stating in the Oval Office, “I had a falling out with him [Epstein]. I haven’t spoken to him in 15 years. I was not a fan of his, that I can tell you.”
