Ellen DeGeneres, much like Rosie O’Donnell, left the country recently to establish a new life across the pond after Donald Trump was elected president.
O’Donnell, 63, admitted that while she hasn’t been in touch with DeGeneres lately, she was “shocked” to hear why the former talk show host fled the United States.
“I’ve never really known Ellen to say anything political in her life, so I was surprised to read that she left because of President Trump. Like, that shocked me, actually,” O’Donnell told Us Weekly. “I’ve been a political person my whole life, not better or worse, it’s just a different way to be in the world.
“I was very clear about the reason why I was leaving, and I don’t think it came as a surprise to anyone. We’re not really in each other’s worlds, and it’s been kind of awkward but you know what? I wish her the best. I wish that she has peace and love in her life and that she is OK.”
While their relationship isn’t strong, O’Donnell insisted she harbors no ill will for the comedian.
ROSIE O’DONNELL CAN’T STOP TALKING ABOUT MAGA DESPITE FLEEING TO IRELAND
“I don’t want to fight against another gay woman. It’s not like we’re tenaciously opposed to each other,” O’Donnell said. “We’re just very different people. We have had some stuff in the past that we never resolved. And not in any way as, as partners or lovers or anything like that, just as friends and comedians, but I wish her the best. I seriously do.”
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She added, “I think that there’s enough room in the world for all of the gay comedians, and we all need to stick together because gay people are the next group to be threatened. And the way they attack trans people is absolutely terrifying.
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“If people don’t understand that they’re a vital part of the LGBTQIA+ community, that’s tragic because we protect our own, especially the most vulnerable.”
DeGeneres and wife Portia de Rossi sold their Montecito estate in August and purchased a farmhouse in the U.K. after President Trump’s successful bid to return to the White House during the 2024 presidential election.
O’Donnell never believed President Donald Trump would win another election, and stayed true to her promise that she would leave the country if he held the presidential position and moved to Ireland, where she’s still waiting for her citizenship approval.
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“I never thought he would win again,” she told the New York Times. “But I said, ‘If he does, I’m going to move,’ and my therapist said, ‘Well, let’s make a real plan.’”
During a recent appearance on Ireland’s “Late Late Show,” she discussed her recent decision to move and her longstanding feud with Trump.
When asked about her decision to move to Ireland, she also said, “The President of the United States has it out for me and has for 20 years,” later adding that “he sort of uses me as a punchline whenever he feels the need.”
O’Donnell confirmed her move to Ireland in March, saying she left the U.S. days before Trump’s inauguration, and explained the new location would be a good fit for her 12-year-old son, Clay.
“There’s a great, great school there. And Clay has done very well. And they were really welcoming,” O’Donnell told Us Weekly.
“And I love the little town, the little village. It’s in the heart of Dublin, but it’s still a village where you know the name of the grocer and you know the name of the cashiers. People are unbearably kind in a way that shocks me every single day.”