Rosie O'Donnell Reveals Secret U.S. Trip After Fleeing to Ireland

The TV host says she briefly returned to the U.S. to see her family, but found the country "scary" compared to Ireland.

Published on Feb. 14, 2026

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Rosie O'Donnell, who fled the U.S. for Ireland last year to escape the Trump presidency, revealed that she recently took a secret two-week trip back to New York to visit her family. O'Donnell said she wanted to "feel what it felt like" to be back in the country, but found the "energy" there to be "scary" compared to the more balanced life she's experienced in Ireland.

Why it matters

O'Donnell's secret trip back to the U.S. provides insight into the mindset of high-profile Trump critics who have chosen to leave the country during his presidency. Her comments about the "scary" energy she felt in the U.S. highlight the deep political divisions that have emerged under the Trump administration.

The details

O'Donnell told Chris Cuomo on his SiriusXM show that she "was recently home for two weeks, and I did not really tell anyone." She said she "wanted to see how hard it would be for me to get in and out of the country," so she "went to see my family." While O'Donnell brought her youngest child to Ireland, she left her adult children behind in the U.S. She said her recent visit to New York made her "more sure" that she had made the right choice to leave the country, as she "felt the United States in a completely different way than I ever had before I left."

  • In January 2025, O'Donnell fled the U.S. for Ireland to escape the Trump presidency.
  • In February 2026, O'Donnell took a secret two-week trip back to New York to visit her family.

The players

Rosie O'Donnell

A 63-year-old TV host who fled the U.S. for Ireland in 2025 to escape the Trump presidency.

Donald Trump

The former U.S. president whose presidency prompted O'Donnell to flee the country.

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What they’re saying

“I was in New York for the last two weeks, and I have to tell you, it feels like a very different country, a very different place to me. Because for a year, I haven't been watching the news. I haven't been watching American culture television.”

— Rosie O'Donnell, TV host (The Daily Beast)

“I think I did what I needed to do to save myself, my child, and my sanity. And I'm very happy that I'm not in the midst of it there, because the energy that I felt while I was in the United States was, if I can use the most simple word I can think of, it was scary.”

— Rosie O'Donnell, TV host (The Daily Beast)

What’s next

O'Donnell plans to return to the U.S. again soon to spend the summer with her family.

The takeaway

O'Donnell's secret trip back to the U.S. highlights the deep political divisions that have emerged under the Trump presidency, with high-profile critics like O'Donnell choosing to leave the country altogether to escape the "scary" political climate.