Comedian and actress Rosie O’Donnell quietly returned to the U.S. after relocating to Ireland following the re-election of President Donald Trump.
O’Donnell revealed during an interview on “SiriusXM’s Cuomo Mornings” with Chris Cuomo that she recently spent two weeks back in the U.S. visiting family.
“I was recently home for two weeks, and I did not really tell anyone,” she said. “I just went to see my family.”
She explained that part of the trip was to test how it would feel to reenter the country after more than a year abroad.
“I wanted to see how hard it would be for me to get in and out of the country,” O’Donnell said. “I wanted to feel what it felt like. I wanted to hold my children again.”
The actress moved to Ireland in January 2025 with her teenage daughter, shortly before Trump’s second inauguration.
During the interview, O’Donnell said she wanted to ensure it would be “safe” for her and her daughter to return over the summer while her daughter is on school break.
She described the United States as feeling like a “very different country” to her since leaving.
“I’ve been in a place where celebrity worship does not exist,” she said of Ireland. “There’s more balance to the news. There’s more balance to life.”
O’Donnell added that she does not regret relocating. “I feel I did what I needed to do to save myself, my child and my sanity,” she said.
She also characterized the atmosphere in the U.S. before she left as “scary,” saying she felt “there’s a feeling that something is really wrong, and no one is doing anything about it.”
O’Donnell and Trump have publicly clashed for nearly two decades, dating back to her time on “The View,” where she criticized him.
After announcing her move abroad, she told the U.K.’s Daily Telegraph in October 2025 that she was applying for Irish citizenship.
At the time, White House spokesperson Abigail Jackson responded, “What great news for America!”
Trump had previously suggested on Truth Social that he was considering revoking O’Donnell’s citizenship.
“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,” he wrote in July 2025.
He reiterated similar remarks in September, calling her “not a Great American.”
O’Donnell responded by citing constitutional protections, per the New York Post.
“He can’t do that because it’s against the Constitution,” she said, noting that citizenship cannot be revoked for someone born in the United States unless they voluntarily renounce it.
Under the 14th Amendment, birthright citizenship protects individuals born on U.S. soil from having their citizenship stripped by executive action.
Despite her relocation, O’Donnell said she intends to maintain dual citizenship and continue visiting the U.S. to see her children.
“I am a very proud citizen of the United States,” she said, adding that she values the freedom to move between both countries.
