Patriot Brief
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What Happened: President Trump addressed the deaths of Rob Reiner and his wife, calling it tragic while criticizing Reiner’s long-running attacks against him.
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Why It Matters: Trump’s response reignited attention on Hollywood’s political obsession with him and the deep cultural divide it represents.
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Bottom Line: The moment mixed sympathy with blunt commentary, showing Trump unwilling to ignore years of public hostility even in tragedy.
President Donald Trump responded Sunday to the shocking deaths of actor-director Rob Reiner and his wife, Michele, calling the situation “a very sad thing” as police investigate the couple’s deaths as a possible homicide.
The longtime Hollywood power couple were found dead inside their Brentwood mansion with injuries reportedly consistent with a knife. Authorities have not released full details, but law enforcement sources say a family member is being investigated as the probe continues.
Trump addressed the news on Truth Social, offering condolences while also taking aim at what he described as Reiner’s lifelong obsession with attacking him. In a lengthy post, Trump said Reiner suffered from what he called “TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME,” blaming the director’s public persona on what Trump described as a consuming political fixation.
“A very sad thing happened last night in Hollywood,” Trump wrote. “Rob Reiner, a tortured and struggling, but once very talented movie director and comedy star, has passed away, together with his wife, Michele.”
Trump added that Reiner was “known to have driven people CRAZY by his raging obsession of President Donald J. Trump,” before concluding, “May Rob and Michele rest in peace!”
Reiner, once celebrated for directing films like Stand by Me, The Princess Bride, and When Harry Met Sally, became one of Trump’s loudest celebrity critics during both of Trump’s terms. In 2017, Reiner told Variety he believed Trump was “mentally unfit” to be president. A year later, he labeled Trump a “mentally ill sociopath.”
Reiner also publicly blamed Trump for the 2022 hammer attack on Paul Pelosi, tying it to Trump’s challenges to the 2020 election.
Photo credit: Monica Schipper/Getty