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Rosie O’Donnell is in her healing era.
After nearly 20 years as President Donald Trump‘s “punchline,” the comedian told People that her move to Ireland has finally given her a chance to “reclaim” herself.
“I am softer I think as a result of being there, of the welcome that we got [in Ireland], and as a result of me not being constantly bombarded by news about the current president,” she told the outlet on Wednesday, July 22.
O’Donnell, a longtime critic of Trump, packed up and left in 2025 after calling the U.S. political situation “heartbreaking.”
‘Archnemesis’
“It’s like a post-traumatic stress disorder for me, considering it’s been 20 years of him using me as a punchline,” O’Donnell said of Trump.
“I think that has allowed me to reclaim myself, who I was before all that went down, even though it’s very strange to have supposedly the most powerful man in the world be your archnemesis,” she continued.
O’Donnell and Trump have been feuding since 2006. She has referred to him as a “criminal” and a “con man.” Meanwhile, he has called her a “threat to humanity” and threatened to revoke her U.S. citizenship.
Temporary return to the U.S.
“It used to be when our president would say things about me, it would be like, whoa,” O’Donnell told People.
Despite now living in Ireland, O’Donnell is back in New York for the summer. The former View cohost is starring in her one-woman show, Common Knowledge, at the Daryl Roth Theatre.
While the play isn’t about her feud with Trump, O’Donnell joked that the story would still make for an interesting film.
“First of all, if you had written this as a movie, a stand-up comic makes fun of a reality show host who is a bloviating idiot and he ends up being the president, and then he doesn’t shut up about her for 20 years, it would be unbelievable — and the fact that it’s my life is very trippy,” she said.
More connected relationship
As she works on reclaiming herself, O’Donnell said her youngest child, who is non-binary and autistic, has brought out a softer side of her.
“Clay’s vulnerability has forced me to be more connected,” she explained. “They want to spend all their time with me on their iPad so it’s forced us to be close in a way that I hadn’t been with my other kids. My show is a love letter to Clay as well.”
The mother of five has previously opened up about how she and her 13-year-old child have adjusted to their new life in Ireland.
In May 2025, O’Donnell shared how “proud and impressed” she was with Clay for making the move. “It’s not easy to move to another country, and we really felt as a family this was the safest and best thing for us to do,” she said in a TikTok video.
Guest hosting for Jimmy Kimmel
Elsewhere in the interview, O’Donnell spoke about guest hosting for Jimmy Kimmel, who has also been a frequent critic of Trump.
“I’m very happy that [Kimmel] asked me,” O’Donnell said of her upcoming appearance on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” in August.
“I admire him. I admire his tenacity and strength. I admire his conviction to speak out against this political terrorism that’s happening in our country and I stand beside him and will,” she said.
