Rosie O'Donnell, the outspoken American comedian and former television host, has found herself once again at the center of a political and personal storm. After decades of public feuding with Donald Trump, O'Donnell has taken her protest against the current U.S. political climate to a new level—by leaving the country, settling in Ireland, and applying for Irish citizenship. Her move, described as a "self-imposed exile," comes after repeated threats from President Trump to revoke her U.S. citizenship and a deepening sense of unease about the direction of American politics.
O'Donnell, 63, touched down in Sydney, Australia in early October 2025 for a pair of live shows at the iconic Sydney Opera House. But her journey to Australia is just one leg of a much larger odyssey that began in January, when she quietly relocated to Ireland. According to The Daily Telegraph, she explained, "I am applying and about to be approved for my Irish citizenship as my grandparents were from there and that's all you need. It will be good to have my Irish citizenship, especially since Trump keeps threatening to take away mine."
Her decision to leave the United States was not made lightly. O'Donnell described her move as the most adventurous thing she had ever done, telling fans on TikTok, "Moving to Ireland was the most adventurous thing that I've ever done in my life. I really believe, because I felt I had to, and thank God that I did. That's all I can say, thank God." She added that the move was for her "safety and sanity," and that she felt a sense of peace and belonging in Ireland that had eluded her in recent years in America.
O'Donnell's application for Irish citizenship is rooted in family history—her grandparents were Irish—and she expects approval soon. But the timing and motivation are unmistakably political. Since the start of 2025, she has been vocal about her disillusionment with the U.S. political environment, particularly following Trump's second inauguration. Speaking to The Daily Telegraph, she warned, "What's coming is fascism in the United States, pure and simple. Christian white nationalism, and that's not democracy, and that's not a democratic republic, and you know, that's not who we are. I feel that if we let them continue on, we are doomed as a democracy."
Her dire predictions are matched by personal frustration. In a candid moment with MSNBC's Nicolle Wallace, O'Donnell admitted that even her therapist was weary of her relentless focus on Trump. "My therapist said, 'Why are you so upset?' And I said to her, 'Why are you not?'" she recalled, reflecting the sense of urgency and alarm she feels about the country's trajectory.
Meanwhile, President Trump has not remained silent. Twice in 2025, he took to his social media platform, Truth Social, to threaten O'Donnell with the loss of her U.S. citizenship. In July, he wrote, "Because of the fact that Rosie O’Donnell is not in the best interests of our Great Country, I am giving serious consideration to taking away her Citizenship. She is a Threat to Humanity, and should remain in the wonderful Country of Ireland, if they want her. GOD BLESS AMERICA!" He renewed the threat in September, declaring, "She is not a Great American and is, in my opinion, incapable of being so!"
O'Donnell, never one to back down, fired back on her Substack account, "He can't do that because it's against the Constitution, and even the Supreme Court has not given him the right to do that ... he's not allowed to do that, the only way you're allowed to take away someone's citizenship is if they renounce it themselves, and I will never renounce my American citizenship. I am a very proud citizen of the United States." She clarified that while she plans to maintain dual citizenship and continue visiting her children in the U.S., she has no intention of giving up her American identity. "I am also getting my citizenship here so I can have dual citizenship in Ireland and the United States because I enjoy living here. It's very peaceful. I love the politics of the country. I love the people and their generous hearts and spirit. And it's been very good for my daughter. But I still want to maintain my citizenship in the United States. My children are there. I will be there visiting and go to see them. And I have the freedom to do that, as does every American citizen."
The legal reality, as several outlets including Fox News and Raw Story have noted, is that the U.S. Constitution does not grant the president the authority to revoke the citizenship of someone born in the country. The 14th Amendment provides robust protections, meaning O'Donnell's citizenship is not in jeopardy, despite the president's rhetoric.
The White House, for its part, has not exactly rushed to O'Donnell's defense. In fact, spokesperson Abigail Jackson told Fox News Digital, "What great news for America!" in response to O'Donnell's Irish citizenship application, a statement that drew both laughter and criticism from observers on both sides of the political aisle.
O'Donnell's feud with Trump is hardly new. It stretches back nearly two decades, to 2006, when she criticized him on The View for his treatment of women. Trump, then best known as the host of The Apprentice, fired back by calling O'Donnell "a woman out of control" in an interview with People magazine. The public spat escalated during Trump's first presidential campaign, when he mentioned O'Donnell during a Republican primary debate, and the two have traded barbs ever since. O'Donnell's tenure as moderator of The View was itself marked by controversy and personal challenges, and she has never shied away from using her platform to speak out on political issues.
Even from abroad, O'Donnell has continued to comment on American affairs. She has lambasted Trump's domestic policies, including his plan to deploy the military to Portland, Oregon, which she called an attempt to enact martial law and suppress elections. Her critiques have only intensified since relocating to Ireland, and she shows no signs of quieting her voice—no matter where she calls home.
For O'Donnell, the move to Ireland is both a practical step and a symbolic gesture. It is a protest against what she sees as a dangerous turn in American politics, a bid for personal peace, and a declaration of her enduring commitment to speaking out. As the comedian takes the stage in Sydney and settles into life abroad, her story remains a vivid example of how the personal and political are often inseparable—and how, for some, exile can be both an escape and an act of defiance.
