Lawmakers from both sides criticize ‘petty’ posts; Trump seeking $5bn in damages from BBC – key US politics stories from 15 December 2025
Celebrities and lawmakers from both of the US’s major political parties have condemned Donald Trump after the president blamed the death of Rob Reiner on what he described as the acclaimed Hollywood director’s dislike of him.
After the apparent killings of Reiner, 78, and his 68-year-old wife, Michele, who were found dead at their home Sunday in the Brentwood section of Los Angeles, Trump took to social media to call the director “tortured and struggling”. Trump also claimed Reiner died “due to the anger he caused others through his massive, unyielding, and incurable affliction with a mind-crippling disease known as TRUMP DERANGEMENT SYNDROME”.
Trump then pivoted to praising his own accomplishments, asserting that Reiner’s alleged “raging obsession” and “obvious paranoia” toward him stood in contrast to his administration.
The US president also took aim on Monday at the British public broadcaster, the BBC, filing a lawsuit against the organization over its editing of a speech he made to supporters in Washington before they stormed the US Capitol in 2021. Trump is requesting at least $5bn in damages.
