President Donald Trump unleashed a fiery Truth Social tirade Wednesday morning targeting actor Robert De Niro and Democratic Representatives Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, suggesting all three should be deported following dueling speeches on Tuesday night that openly challenged his State of the Union address.
The 82-year-old Academy Award winner headlined a counter-event called “State of the Swamp” at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C., on Tuesday evening—speaking as Trump addressed Congress just over a mile away at the U.S. Capitol. De Niro delivered an emotional appeal, urging Americans to mobilize against the administration.
The president fired back. In his Wednesday morning post, Trump wrote that De Niro and the two congresswomen should “actually get on a boat” together and leave the country.
“They should actually get on a boat with Trump Deranged Robert De Niro, another sick and demented person with, I believe, an extremely Low IQ, who has absolutely no idea what he is doing or saying—some of which is seriously CRIMINAL!” Trump wrote on Truth Social.
The president specifically mocked De Niro’s emotional speech, comparing him unfavorably to longtime Trump nemesis Rosie O’Donnell, who moved to Ireland in January 2025 to escape the attention of Trump’s second term. O’Donnell recently revealed to SiriusXM’s Chris Cuomo that she made a secret trip back to the United States to visit family but described the atmosphere as “scary.”
Trump also directed his fury at Omar and Tlaib, who disrupted his State of the Union speech Tuesday night by shouting “You have killed Americans” after the president discussed Minnesota’s Somali community. The outburst referenced two U.S. citizens shot and killed by federal agents in Minneapolis in January—Renée Good on January 7 and Alex Pretti on January 24.
The president described the two progressive lawmakers as having “the bulging, bloodshot eyes of crazy people” and suggested they should be “sent back from where they came—as fast as possible.” Omar is a Somalia-born American citizen, while Tlaib was born in Detroit, Michigan, making Trump’s deportation threats legally dubious at best.
White House Communications Director Steven Cheung piled on in a statement to USA TODAY, calling De Niro a “washed-up has-been who hasn’t been relevant in 30 years” and suggesting he seek “immediate treatment for a debilitating case of Trump Derangement Syndrome that has rotted his peanut sized brain.”
The “State of the Swamp” event was organized by Defiance.org. Other speakers included “Avengers” actor Mark Ruffalo, who appeared via video, and former CNN anchor Jim Acosta. De Niro appeared on “The Best People with Nicolle Wallace” podcast on February 23, where he called Trump “the enemy of this country” and predicted the president would refuse to leave office when his term ends.
The clashes extended beyond the celebrity sphere. Marcelo Gomes da Silva, a 19-year-old State of the Union guest from Milford, Massachusetts, left the speech midway through after the Department of Homeland Security called him out on social media, describing him as “an illegal alien who has no right to be in our nation.” Gomes da Silva legally came to the U.S. from Brazil at age 6 with his parents, though his visa later expired. He was detained by ICE in May while driving to volleyball practice, spending six days in custody in Burlington before his release.
Meanwhile, reports emerged that a White House staffer named Garrett Wade appears to be behind the “Johnny MAGA” X account, which boasts nearly 300,000 followers and regularly amplifies administration talking points without disclosing its government connections. According to WIRED, Wade works as a rapid response manager for the Trump administration. The account has posted inflammatory content about the Minneapolis shootings and other controversial topics, raising serious questions about transparency and ethics.
De Niro, who is American-born and has long been a vocal Trump critic, told the National Press Club audience on Tuesday that he feels “betrayed by my country” under the current administration. The actor’s appeal for Americans to reclaim democratic values through peaceful protest and voting set off a 24-hour news cycle that extended far beyond the State of the Union itself.