NEW YORK, N.Y. — Rosie O’Donnell said she’s still reeling from Donald Trump’s infamous debate insult nearly a decade later — and revealed she left the U.S. for Ireland after being verbally harassed by Trump supporters in public.
Key Points
- Rosie O’Donnell recalled being insulted by Trump during his 2016 presidential campaign.
- The comedian said she moved to Ireland after MAGA supporters cursed at her in a CVS.
- O’Donnell shared the story during a recent interview, citing ongoing discomfort with Trump-era rhetoric.
In a recent interview, O’Donnell revisited the moment Trump called her a “pig, gross, disgusting, fat, ugly” during a 2016 GOP debate — a comment met with applause from the audience and still fresh in her memory.
“I was at home with my kids watching it going, How do you explain this?” she said, reflecting on the incident. The remark came after a moderator pressed Trump on his derogatory statements about women, to which he responded: “No, only Rosie O’Donnell.”
O’Donnell said the climate following Trump’s election win became personally unsafe. She recounted an encounter at a CVS shortly after the 2016 election, where two Trump supporters, including one wearing a MAGA hat, cursed at her in front of her child.
“They came over and told me with curse words that their guy won and said the F word in front of my child,” she recalled. “My child said, Why are people cursing at us?”
She explained to her child that the aggressive behavior was related to the political climate, referencing Trump’s return to politics: “She said, So it’s time for us to go.”
O’Donnell said she ultimately left the country, citing concerns for safety and well-being, and settled in Ireland. Though she did not disclose exactly when she moved, her comments indicated that the decision was directly tied to the fallout from Trump’s presidency and its impact on her public interactions.
Rosie says Trump’s insult still hurts — and MAGA fans cursing her out helped send her packing to Ireland.