Most Americans told YouGov they found President Trump’s Truth Social post and subsequent remarks about the fatal stabbing of Rob Reiner and his wife inappropriate. Overall, 72% of respondents labeled the post inappropriate, while 17% called it appropriate. The poll shows majorities of Democrats and a plurality of non‑MAGA Republicans rejected the president’s comments, and condolence statements from other officials were widely viewed as appropriate.
YouGov: 72% Say Trump’s Post About Rob Reiner’s Killing Was ‘Inappropriate’
Nearly two-thirds of U.S. adults judged President Donald Trump’s social-media post and subsequent remarks about the fatal stabbing of actor-director Rob Reiner and his wife, Michele Singer Reiner, to be inappropriate, according to a YouGov poll released Friday.
Poll Findings
YouGov presented respondents with a screenshot of the president’s post alongside reactions from other elected officials and asked whether the messages were appropriate. When shown the screenshot of Trump’s post, 72% of respondents labeled it inappropriate, while 17% called it appropriate. The survey was fielded Dec. 15–18 with 1,107 respondents; the reported margin of sampling error is ±4 percentage points.
The poll showed partisan and factional splits: 55% of Republicans and 90% of Democrats said the post was inappropriate. Among Republicans, the split was starker by faction: 66% of non‑MAGA Republicans found the president’s comments inappropriate (19% said appropriate), while MAGA Republicans were nearly evenly divided (45% inappropriate, 43% appropriate).
Reactions From Other Officials
Respondents broadly viewed condolence and sympathetic messages from other elected officials as appropriate. Online statements from Sen. Ted Cruz (R‑Texas), former President Barack Obama and California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) were judged appropriate by 89%, 88% and 84% of respondents, respectively.
What Happened
The Reiners were found dead in an apparent stabbing at their home in the Brentwood neighborhood of Los Angeles. Their son, Nick Reiner, has been charged with two counts of murder in connection with their deaths.
Trump’s Post and Follow‑Up Comments
On Truth Social, the president wrote that Rob Reiner was "a tortured and struggling, but once very talented movie director and comedy star" and suggested he had passed away "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."
Trump later told reporters he believed Reiner "became a deranged person" and was "very bad for our country," statements that prompted criticism from lawmakers across the political spectrum.
Responses and Comparisons
Lawmakers condemned the president’s remarks. Rep. Seth Moulton (D‑Mass.) accused Trump of "celebrating their death because of their political views," likening the reaction to online mockery that followed the fatal shooting of conservative activist Charlie Kirk earlier this year. Conservative commentator Erick Erickson noted that people who had been punished for tasteless posts after Kirk’s death were now "staring at the President of the United States’s social media account in disbelief."
The YouGov poll provides a snapshot of public opinion in the days after the incident and the president’s posts. It shows widespread disapproval of Trump’s comments across much of the political spectrum, with notable divisions among Republicans by faction.
Source: YouGov poll, Dec. 15–18 (n=1,107; MOE ±4). Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc.
