Trump levels political attack on Rob Reiner in inflammatory post after
his killing
[December 16, 2025]
By MICHELLE L. PRICE
WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump on Monday blamed Rob Reiner's
outspoken opposition to the president for the actor-director’s killing,
delivering the unsubstantiated claim in a shocking post that seemed
intent on decrying his opponents even in the face of a tragedy.
The statement, even for Trump, was a shocking comment that came as
police were still investigating the deaths of the director and his wife,
Michele Singer Reiner, as an apparent homicide. The couple were found
dead at their home Sunday in Los Angeles. Investigators believe they
suffered stab wounds and the couple's son Nick Reiner was in police
custody early Monday.
Trump has a long track record of inflammatory remarks, but his comments
in a social media post were a drastic departure from the role presidents
typically play in offering a message of consolation or tribute after the
death of a public figure. His message drew criticism even from
conservatives and his supporters and laid bare Trump's unwillingness to
rise above political grievance in moments of crisis.
Trump, in a post on his social media network, said Reiner and his wife
were killed “reportedly due to the anger he caused others through his
massive, unyielding, and incurable affliction with a mind crippling
disease known as TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME.”
He said Reiner “was known to have driven people CRAZY by his raging
obsession of President Donald J. Trump, with his obvious paranoia
reaching new heights as the Trump Administration surpassed all goals and
expectations of greatness.”
The president did not mention his personal connection to Reiner's wife,
who was a photographer. Peter Osnos, the original publisher of “The Art
of the Deal,” confirmed Monday that Michele Singer took the cover image
of Trump’s 1987 bestseller.
Kentucky Republican Rep. Thomas Massie, who has bucked much of his
party’s lockstep agreement with the president, criticized Trump for the
comment.
“Regardless of how you felt about Rob Reiner, this is inappropriate and
disrespectful discourse about a man who was just brutally murdered,”
Massie wrote in a post on X. “I guess my elected GOP colleagues, the VP,
and White House staff will just ignore it because they’re afraid? I
challenge anyone to defend it.”
Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, a Georgia Republican whom Trump branded a
“traitor” for disagreeing with him, responded to Trump's message by
saying, “This is a family tragedy, not about politics or political
enemies.”
Republican Reps. Mike Lawler of New York and Stephanie Bice of Oklahoma,
who are not known for pushing back on the White House, also criticized
Trump’s message.
Reiner — a director of beloved films like “The Princess Bride" and “When
Harry Met Sally” — was one of the most active Democrats in the film
industry and regularly campaigned on behalf of liberal causes and hosted
fundraisers. He was a vocal critic of Trump, calling him in a 2017
interview with Variety “mentally unfit” to be president and “the
single-most unqualified human being to ever assume the presidency of the
United States.”
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Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner arrive on the red carpet at the
State Department for the Kennedy Center Honors gala dinner, Dec. 2,
2023, in Washington. (AP Photo/Kevin Wolf, File)
The White House, which shared the president's post, did not respond
to a message about the criticism it was receiving and calls for
Trump to take it down.
Speaking at the White House to reporters later Monday, Trump doubled
down on his criticism of Reiner when he was asked if he stood by his
post. Using the third person, Trump said Reiner “was a deranged
person as far as Trump is concerned.”
“I was not a fan of Rob Reiner at all, in any way shape or form,”
Trump said. “I thought he was very bad for our country.”
The unsympathetic message was the latest example of Trump's
unsparing prism through which he views those he perceives as
enemies.
He made retribution against political enemies a prime focus of his
campaign for the White House last year. And he has in the past made
light of violence when it's befallen those on the other side of the
political aisle.
When Nancy Pelosi’s husband, Paul Pelosi, was attacked by an
intruder looking for the former House speaker at the family’s San
Francisco home in 2022 and beaten over the head with a hammer, Trump
later mocked the attack.
That's despite his comments after the assassination of conservative
activist Charlie Kirk earlier this year. Trump said Kirk's killing
was “the tragic consequence of demonizing those with whom you
disagree.”
His administration then sought consequences for people who were
critical of Kirk or even celebrated his killing.
Jenna Ellis, who was one of Trump's lawyers and worked on his
efforts in 2020 to overturn the results of the presidential
election, pointed out Trump's double standard and called his post
“NOT the appropriate response.”
“The Right uniformly condemned political and celebratory responses
to Charlie Kirk’s death. This is a horrible example from Trump (and
surprising considering the two attempts on his own life) and should
be condemned by everyone with any decency,” Ellis said in a post on
X.
When Trump spoke at Kirk's memorial service, he used his remarks to
underline how he views his adversaries.
“I hate my opponent,” the president said.
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Associated Press writer Hillel Italie in New York contributed to
this report.
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