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U.S. President Donald Trump sparked widespread condemnation Monday after posting remarks on social media suggesting filmmaker Rob Reiner and his wife were killed because of the director's criticism of the president, drawing rare public rebukes from some of his staunchest Republican allies.
The backlash intensified after police announced that Reiner's son, Nick, had been arrested on suspicion of murdering the acclaimed director and his wife, Michele Singer Reiner, in their Los Angeles home Sunday evening. The president's comments on Truth Social claimed the couple had died "reportedly due to the anger" caused by Reiner's opposition to Trump, while boasting of his own political achievements.
The response from Republican lawmakers was unusually swift and critical. Representative Marjorie Taylor Greene, once among Trump's most vocal congressional defenders, chastised the president over his reaction to what she called a "family tragedy" that was "not about politics or political enemies." She noted that many families struggle with addiction and mental health issues, saying such situations deserve empathy.
"I'd expect to hear something like this from a drunk guy at a bar, not the president of the United States," Nebraska Republican Don Bacon told CNN. Representative Thomas Massie called Trump's remarks "inappropriate and disrespectful," while New York moderate Mike Lawler described them as "wrong."
Democratic lawmakers responded with equal force. David Axelrod, former chief strategist to President Barack Obama, labeled Trump's post "perverse" and criticized what he called an "absence of empathy and grace for the Reiner family in their moment of profound loss and grief."
Senator Chris Murphy said Trump had "lost it," writing that the president was "now saying Rob and Michele Reiner caused their own murder because they didn't support him."
Miles Taylor, a former Trump administration homeland security official who became a prominent critic after publishing an anonymous tell-all book in 2019, accused the president of "mocking the dead" and called him a "sick creep." Taylor said Trump's attacks on Senator John McCain after the veteran's death had initially pushed him to speak out from within the administration.
Police were summoned to the Reiners' residence in the upscale Los Angeles neighborhood of Brentwood around 3:40 p.m. Sunday, with reports indicating the call originated from inside the home. Officers discovered the bodies of Rob Reiner, 78, and Michele Singer Reiner inside, with multiple media outlets reporting they appeared to have been stabbed. Some reports suggested their throats had been slashed.
Detectives found no signs of forced entry, according to authorities. Entertainment outlet TMZ reported that the couple's daughter discovered the bodies and informed police that another family member had killed them.
Nick Reiner, 32, was taken into custody Sunday evening and questioned overnight before being charged with murder before dawn Monday. He is being held on $4 million bail in Los Angeles.
The younger Reiner has faced documented struggles with drug addiction spanning years. As a teenager, he cycled through rehabilitation programs and experienced periods of homelessness.
By 2015, as he appeared to be recovering, Nick and his father collaborated on "Being Charlie," a semi-autobiographical film about a successful actor and aspiring politician whose son battles addiction. Rob Reiner told reporters at the time that parenting a child suffering from addiction had been extraordinarily difficult, describing "very, very hard" and "painful and difficult highs and lows." He said making the movie "dredged it all up again."
TMZ reported that Rob and Michele Reiner attended late-night television host Conan O'Brien's Christmas party Saturday night with Nick, where guests witnessed the father and son engage in a "very loud argument."
Rob Reiner was a Hollywood fixture for decades, directing beloved films including rock music mockumentary "This is Spinal Tap," romantic comedy "When Harry Met Sally," courtroom drama "A Few Good Men," and coming-of-age classic "Stand By Me." Michele Singer Reiner was a photographer who collaborated with her husband on his 1990 horror film "Misery."
As a Democratic activist, Rob Reiner campaigned for same-sex marriage legalization and early childhood education initiatives. His death prompted tributes from prominent Democrats including Obama and California Governor Gavin Newsom.
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