Former first lady Michelle Obama on Monday appeared to push back on President Donald Trump’s controversial remarks about the death of Hollywood couple Rob Reiner and Michele Singer Reiner.
In an appearance on ABC’s “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” Obama shared that she and her husband, former President Barack Obama, were supposed to see the Reiners on Sunday — the same day their bodies were discovered stabbed to death in their California home.
While her husband early Monday shared that the two were “heartbroken” to learn of the Reiners’ deaths, Michelle Obama appeared to single out Trump’s statement, which attributed the couple’s deaths to “Trump derangement syndrome” and the director’s lack of support for the president.
“Let me just say this, unlike some people: Rob and Michele Reiner are some of the most decent, courageous people you ever want to know,” she told Kimmel. “They’re not deranged or crazed. What they have always been are passionate people. In a time when there’s not a lot of courage going on, they were the kind of people who were ready to put their actions behind what they cared about. And they cared about their family. And they cared about this country.”
Police are currently investigating the Reiners’ deaths as an “apparent homicide,” and authorities announced Monday that Reiner’s son, Nick Reiner, is in custody as a suspect. He has been booked on murder charges and is being held on $4 million bail.
The son of legendary comedian Carl Reiner, Rob Reiner was a strong supporter of progressive causes, including LGTBQ+ rights and early childhood education, and often held fundraisers and campaigned for Democratic issues. He was also a frequent critic of Trump’s.
In a Monday morning post to Truth Social, Trump said Reiner was “a tortured and struggling, but once very talented movie director and comedy star, has passed away, together with his wife, Michele, 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, sometimes referred to as TDS.”
Despite sharp backlash from Democrats and Republicans alike, Trump doubled down on his comments during a medal presentation Monday afternoon, telling reporters in the Oval Office that he wasn’t a fan of Reiner’s “at all.”
“He was a deranged person as far as Trump is concerned,” Trump said.
The White House declined to comment.
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