US President Donald Trump draws condemnation from allies and critics for suggesting filmmaker Rob Reiner’s criticism led to his and his wife’s murder.
WASHINGTON: US President Donald Trump faced widespread condemnation on Monday for suggesting filmmaker Rob Reiner and his wife were murdered due to Reiner’s criticism of him.
Trump posted on Truth Social that the Reiners died “reportedly due to the anger” the director sparked by criticising the Republican leader.
He claimed Reiner had “driven people CRAZY by his raging obsession” with attacking the president.
The remarks triggered a wave of negative responses on his own social network and drew rebukes from some Republican allies.
Nebraska Republican Don Bacon told CNN he would “expect to hear something like this from a drunk guy at a bar, not the president of the United States.”
Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene scolded Trump over his response to a “family tragedy” that was “not about politics.”
“Many families deal with a family member with drug addiction and mental health issues,” she posted on X.
Republican Thomas Massie called the comments “inappropriate and disrespectful,” while Mike Lawler labelled them “wrong.”
Trump doubled down when asked at a White House ceremony if he stood by his remarks.
“I think he hurt himself… career wise,” Trump said of Reiner.
“He became like a deranged person, Trump derangement syndrome.”
Former Trump administration official Miles Taylor accused the president of “mocking the dead” and branded him a “sick creep.”
Reiner was an outspoken critic who called Trump a threat to democracy and raised funds for Democratic candidates.
David Axelrod, former strategist for Barack Obama, described Trump’s post as “perverse.”
“The absence of empathy & grace for the Reiner family in their moment of profound loss and grief is sad and revealing,” he wrote.
Democratic Senator Chris Murphy said Trump had “lost it,” calling the remarks “so sick.”
The backlash intensified as police announced the arrest of the couple’s son, Nick Reiner, on suspicion of murder. – AFP
