Trump’s Psychotic Rob Reiner Attack Exposes Way More Than MAGA Hypocrisy
PDS Published 12/15/2025
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A beloved fixture in Hollywood is dead and some reports are saying his own son killed him.
Right, we’re talking about Rob Reiner and his wife Michele - both of whom were found dead in their home yesterday afternoon.
Now, there’s still a lot of unanswered questions surrounding this situation but here’s what we know so far:
Yesterday afternoon, the LA Fire Department responded to a medical aid request at the house the Reiners owned in Brentwood.
There, the bodies were found with knife wounds, and the LAPD confirmed detectives from the robbery homicide division were investigating the deaths as an “apparent homicide.” []
If you’re not familiar with the name Rob Reiner, you’re probably at least familiar with his work in film and television over the last 40 years.
He directed This is Spinal Tap, When Harry Met Sally, the Princess Bride - just to name a few.
Then there’s his acting work - he won 2 Emmys for his role in the sitcom All in the Family, made an appearance in Sleepless in Seattle, and even had a recurring role in season 4 of The Bear.
And that’s just the entertainment stuff - he was also a liberal political activist who campaigned on behalf of marriage equality, spearheaded campaigns against smoking, and even considered running for governor against Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2006. []
He and his wife Michelle met while he was working on When Harry Met Sally and got married in 1989 and went on to have 3 children of their own - two sons, Nick and Jake, and one daughter, Romy.
As well as Rob coming into the relationship with one adopted daughter from a previous marriage.
But families are rarely picture perfect - even, and maybe especially, famous ones.
And in fact, Rob and his son Nick even made a movie together, which premiered in 2015, about the issues their family endured.
Specifically, the movie centers around a character inspired by Nick and his struggle with addiction.
With Nick and Rob talking about the project in 2016 - saying,
But even that tiny peek into familial conflict that doesn’t make the reporting we’re seeing any easier to swallow.
Right, People magazine has reported that their exclusive sources confirmed Nick killed Rob and Michele.
With TMZ saying that an argument led to Nick attacking his parents and it was one of his sisters that found the bodies.
And the New York Times confirmed that Nick was arrested and is being held on $4 million bail, according to county jail records. []
And the LAPD chief of police also reportedly confirmed that Nick has been booked for murder.
And while the public waits for more information, many people are chiming in across the internet to talk about Rob and Michele and mourn their loss.
With those in the film industry highlighting his beloved work as well as his position as a staple of the entertainment space.
Even Sean Astin, president of SAG-AFTRA, released a statement, saying,
“Rob Reiner is one of the most significant figures in the history of film and television. The impact he made on American culture simply can’t be overstated. Tributes will pour in and the impossibly long list of genre defining films and indelible performances will play in our minds and hearts.” []
Then there was the likes of Gavin Newsom and Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass who focused on his other works - like his advocacy for LGBTQ+ community. []
And then there’s Donald Trump - who took this bizarre stance on the whole situation in a post on Truth Social:
“A very sad thing happened last night in Hollywood. Rob Reiner, a tortured and struggling, but once very talented movie director and comedy star, has passed away, together with his wife, Michele, reportedly 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. He was known to have driven people CRAZY by his raging obsession of President Donald J. Trump, with his obvious paranoia reaching new heights as the Trump Administration surpassed all goals and expectations of greatness, and with the Golden Age of America upon us, perhaps like never before. May Rob and Michele rest in peace! ” []
And that’s drawn sharp criticism online - with many people, even conservatives, condemning it and some contrasting to the one Rob Reiner made when Charlie Kirk was killed.
Saying things lik e,
“Rob Reiner was both classy and sincere when Charlie Kirk was murdered. Let's return the sentiment now that he and his wife have been murdered.”
And,
“Trump should lose his job for mocking Rob Reiner’s death the same way teachers were fired for their Facebook posts in the wake of Charlie Kirk’s death.”
Even Marjorie Taylor Greene chimed in to hit back at Trump’s post, saying,
“This is a family tragedy, not about politics or political enemies.”
Regardless of the self-centered, sundowning ramblings of the president, we’re just going to have to wait for more information about the death of Rob and Michele Reiner.
Right, whether or not the authorities will officially confirm Nick Reiner as involved in his parents’ murder or whether there’s more to this story than what we know now.
But I would love to know your thoughts about this whole thing.
Especially if you’re a fan of Rob Reiner’s work.
Let me know in those comments down below.
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The highly anticipated meeting between Candace Owens and Erika Kirk is finally here, and you’re not allowed to see it.
With the late Charlie Kirk’s widow announcing last night: “Candace Owens and I are meeting for a private, in-person discussion on Monday, December 15. Candace Owens and I have agreed that public discussions, livestreams, and tweets are on hold until after this meeting. I look forward to a productive conversation.” [Post]
With Owens replying to that: “I am very much looking forward to this discussion.” [Post]
So it would appear that the livestream scheduled for today where Turning Point USA was going to debunk Owens’s conspiracy theories has now been either cancelled or postponed.
And online you saw a wide range of reactions to this.
Right, some saying it’s good they’re putting this conflict to bed away from the cameras rather than creating a spectacle.
Others doubting this will be “productive” in any sense of the word, especially if it’s not recorded, and Owens can just go on her show afterward and make up some crazy shit about what was said.
Right, because she already believes that Charlie’s assassination was plotted by some conspiracy between Israel, France, maybe Egypt, the U.S. government and people inside TPUSA.
So many are skeptical that a conversation’s gonna snap her back to reality, but when Bari Weiss [Barry Wice] asked Erika Kirk what she has to say to Owens and others out there spreading conspiracy theories, she said: [Lead B roll into clip]
[Clip, 33:12 - 33:20] Caption: “Stop. That’s it. That’s all I have to say. Stop.”
So that may give some indication as to the stance she’s gonna take during this private discussion, but also, we should talk for a moment about the person interviewing Erika there: Bary Weiss.
Right, because ever since Paramount head and Trump ally David Ellison anointed her editor in chief of CBS News in October, she’s attracted a lot of criticism for her editorial changes at the network.
And that came to a head Saturday night when she personally moderated a CBS town hall with Erika Kirk.
Which struck many observers as odd right off the bat, because (1) CBS News doesn’t typically host town halls like this, and (2) senior editorial executives like Weiss typically stay off camera. [Quote, find “off camera”]
You could even see where this was going just by looking at the event’s sponsors, who included the right-wing Heritage Foundation, a Christian prayer app, a faith-based film studio, and the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews. [Quote, find “Heritage”]
As well as a relatively small handful of mainstream advertisers like Spotify and TikTok. [Same quote]
And if you applied to attend the town hall, you were asked a series of questions including:
“Do you consider yourself a conservative?” Are you “grieving the loss of a loved one?” and “are you an evangelical Christian?” [Quote same link, Find “grieving”]
Plus for many it’s just weird that, after Erika Kirk has given interviews to numerous outlets and podcasters, spoken at TPUSA events, and even closed out The New York Times Dealbook summit, Weiss brought her on CBS as if she’s finally been given the chance to speak.
Now as for the town hall itself, there are a few moments that have been grabbing the most attention, starting with the question from Hunter Kozak, the guy who was debating Charlie Kirk right before he was shot. [Lead B roll into clip]
And Kozak said, hey, I admire how you’ve condemned violent rhetoric, but what about Donald Trump? Aren’t our nation’s leaders most responsible for defusing violence? [Lead B roll into clip]
[Clip, 18:27 - 18:39; Clip, 19:22 - 19:37; Clip, 20:14 - 20:32, 20:45 - 20:49] Caption: [Hunter Kozak:] “President Trump called on six Democratic lawmakers to be tried for sedition, which he clarified was punishable by death. He then reposted a simple message: ‘Hang them.’” … [Erika Kirk:] “I understand your sentiment, I do. But this is also so much deeper than just one person. This starts at the home, okay? This starts with family. … We have to look in the mirror. When you become a father, when you become a mother, how are you raising your kids? Are you taking responsibility, or are you giving them a device and saying, ‘go down that rabbit hole. I’m trying to go to pilates class.’? … Do you want your kid to be a thought leader or an assassin?”
So that provoked a lot of ridicule online, with people saying things like:
“Erika Kirk shaming moms for taking an hour for Pilates while she’s on TV every single day is peak fucking hypocrisy.” [Post]
And then, at another point, someone said to Erika, we all know about anti-Semitism on the left, but can you condemn anti-Semitism on the right?
And at first, Erika did that in general terms without naming any names …
[Clip, 24:34 - 24:39, 25:03 - 25:07] Caption: “Charlie always would say very clearly, Jew hate was brain rot. … How could you hate the Jewish people?”
But then she seemed to suggest that to stop anti-Semitism, people need to become Christian, which, just, yeah.
[Clip, 25:32 - 25:48, 26:14 - 26:19] Caption: “We are broken, sinful humans in need of a lord and savior, and that’s why it is so important to give your life to the lord, because once you do that and you fully surrender to the lord you have no room in your heart for hate. … And you cannot separate the Old Testament from the New Testament. You cannot.”
And that’s a theme that many took note of, because throughout this entire town hall nearly all of Erika’s answers, and some of Weiss’s questions, really harped on Christianity.
With Weiss and other attendees asking Erika how she follows Charlie’s practice of keeping the sabbath, soliciting advice for Christian women seeking conservative husbands in big cities, and asking how she trusts God despite unfair and immense suffering.
Right, even after the event, Weiss seemed like she was overwhelmed by the aura of spiritual power surrounding Erika Kirk.
[Clip, 05:03 - 05:06, 05:10 - 05:10] Caption: “She is a deeply religious Christian. … I’m not Christian, but bearing witness to something that in her is clearly very deeply held and sincere was quite powerful and powerful for everyone in the audience.”
So needless to say, this was a “unique” piece of programming for CBS News, one of America’s most venerated legacy media networks.
And you had people giving reactions like: “How humiliating for CBS to go from Walter Cronkite tearfully breaking the news of JFK’s assassination and death to Bari Weiss doing a town hall with the widow of a racist podcaster who is milking her husband’s death for every penny.” [Post]
As well as: “There has never been a brand so thoroughly destroyed in such a short period. This is what they’re going to do to CNN next—to the extent they haven’t already.” [Post]
But it wasn’t just viewers turned off by the event; right, advertisers seemed wary too.
With Variety reporting that most of the commercial breaks were filled by cheaper direct-response advertisers — things like the dietary supplement SuperBeets, the home-repair service HomeServe.com, CarFax, even Chia Pet. [Quote, find “CarFax”]
[Clip, 00:01 - 00:05]
And for context, the way direct-response advertising works is that networks typically just put them on the air whenever it’s convenient; right, they’re not the first choice.
So when you see a bunch of these ads in one program like this, it suggests the network couldn’t line up more mainstream support for its content.
And although the Saturday 8 p.m. slot given to the town hall is one of the least watched hours in broadcast television, that doesn’t explain why big advertisers like Amazon, Ferrero, and Procter & Gamble returned for the 9 p.m. rebroadcast of “48 Hours.” [Quote]
So all of that could be a signal that CBS News’s new editorial direction isn’t the right one from a business perspective, but Weiss seems intent on keeping this going.
[Clip, 01:53 - 02:03, 02:07 - 02:14] Caption: “This is going to be the first of many conversations and debates on CBS News about the things that matter most, which are often the hardest to talk about. … You will not agree with everything you hear tonight or in any of these other broadcasts, and that is exactly the point.”
This as you have network staffers telling The Independent:
“David Ellison must be mortified by his $150 million investment in someone who’s so quickly revealed themselves to be the most shallow, least interesting person in TV news.” [Quote]
As well as: “How embarrassing. Bari’s been Editor-in-Chief for five seconds and has revealed that all she really wants is to be on TV herself.” [Quote same link]
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Australia just had its deadliest shooting in thirty years.
Police say a father and son opened fire at Bondi (BON-dye) Beach in Sydney on Sunday evening – the same time as an event taking place there to mark the first day of Hanukkah.
Which led officials to declare the shooting a terrorist event and say it was “designed to target” Jewish people.
And with that, notably, a holocaust survivor is among the dead.
Overall, at least fifteen people were killed – including children;
forty-two people were taken to hospital;
and, as of recording, twenty-six people remain hospitalized – including a dozen in critical condition.
Though, notably, all of those numbers may have been even higher had this played out just slightly differently.
And I say that because:
1) police located three improvised explosive devices at the crime scene after the attack – which, thankfully, were never detonated.
and 2) in a moment captured on video, a man widely being hailed as a hero tackled and disarmed one of the shooters while the attack was underway (BROLL).
And that man has since been identified as 43-year-old father of two Ahmed al-Ahmed.
He’s an Australian citizen who immigrated from Syria in 2006.
And he’s now one of those in the hospital – earning a visit from the premier of New South Wales, the Australian state where Sydney is located, who wrote on X:
“Ahmed is a real-life hero.”
“…his incredible bravery no doubt saved countless lives when he disarmed a terrorist at enormous personal risk.”
And, with that, a GoFundMe page has actually been set up to support Ahmed.
And it’s already raised the equivalent of almost one million US dollars — including roughly $65,000 from billionaire Bill Ackman.
But with all that, as far as the suspects?
They’ve been named by some media outlets but police have only identified them only as a 50-year-old father and his twenty-four-year-old son.
The father reportedly first arrived in Australia in 1998 on a student visa and was in the country legally.
He was also a licensed firearms holder with six guns.
And he was fatally shot by police at the scene.
The son, an Australian-born citizen, suffered what were described as “critical injuries” and was hospitalized.
With the police commissioner for New South Wales, the Australian state where Sydney is located, saying:
“Based on his medical condition, it is likely that that person may face criminal charges.” []
Also, notably, according to Australia’s prime minister, the son first came to the attention of the country’s national security and intelligence service back in October 2019.
When he was examined, quote, “on the basis of being associated with others”.
Notably, however, you also had the prime minister claiming there had been “no indication of any ongoing threat or threat of him engaging in violence.”
And adding that there were no signs as of now that he and his father were acting as part of a wider terror group – saying:
“There’s no evidence of collusion, no evidence that these people were part of a cell.”
At the same time, however, we started seeing reports today that the men may have pledged allegiance to the Islamic State – and flags of the group were reportedly found in their car. []
Although, notably, many have tried to connect the attack to rising antisemitism associated with backlash to Israel’s war in Gaza.
With opinion pieces in the Atlantic and New York Times, for example, rushing before much was known to bring up the idea of “Intifada” – a concept most often associated with Palestinian uprisings against Israeli occupation.
With the phrase “Globalize the Intifada” seen by many Jewish organizations as a call for violence and antisemitic terrorism – although that’s disputed.
You also had Israeli Prime Minister Bibi Netanyahu suggesting that Australia’s recognition of the state of Palestine had caused the attack by “pour[ing] fuel on the antisemitic fire” – claiming:
“Your government did nothing to stop the spread of antisemitism in Australia.”
“You took no action. You let the disease spread and the result is the horrific attacks on Jews we saw today.”
The Australian prime minister rejected the accusation – noting that “most of the world recognises a two-state solution as being the way forward in the Middle East.”
But with all that, putting aside the question of blame, it is widely accepted that Australia has seen an especially high rise in antisemitism.
With a prominent Jewish advocacy group in the country recently reporting that more than 3,700 anti-Jewish incidents had taken place in the country during the two years after the October 7th attack in 2023.
A rate which the group says is five times what it was in the decade before the attack.
Although, notably, what counts as an incident includes extreme acts of violence, like Sunday’s shooting as well as an arson attack at an Australian synagogue last year, but also things like anti-Israel graffiti. []
And with that, when Australia created a special envoy to combat antisemitism in 2024, you had some arguing that pro-Israel groups had successfully weaponized antisemitism by conflating it with criticism of Israel's war in Gaza.
So that conversation is gonna keep playing out but in the meantime, Sunday’s attack has also sparked a lot of conversation around another big issue: gun control.
Right, Australia already has strict gun laws – many of which were introduced after a gunman killed 35 people on the Australian island of Tasmania in 1996.
But now, you have the premier of New South Wales saying he wants “to introduce the toughest gun legislation in the country.”
With the Australian prime minister announcing that his government will consider tightening the entire country’s gun laws.
And specifically, with what's being considered, gun owners might soon face limits on the number of weapons they can own.
And noncitizens may be restricted from owning firearms at all.
So that’s where we’re at now and we’ll just have to wait and see where this goes next.
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But then, unfortunately, Australia isn’t the only mass shooting we need to talk about.
Right, because also this weekend, a gunman burst into a classroom at Brown University in Rhode Island, killed two people, and injured nine more – with all of the victims being students.
And not only that, as of recording, the shooter? He’s still at large.
And really there’s just very little that is known at this point.
As far as how it went down, the shooting happened Saturday afternoon in a room where students were attending a final exam review session for an economics class.
And other students were in the same building actually taking their final exams or studying. []
After reports of an active shooter, an alert was sent by the university telling students and faculty members to lock their doors, silence their phones and stay hidden.
And some students ended up spending the night locked in classrooms, libraries and dorms.
Security footage showed a male suspect walking away from the scene of the shooting wearing all black clothing.
But there is no weapon visible in the video and his face is covered.
Officials also say a firearm was not found in a sweep of the building.[]
And someone who had been considered a person of interest and was detained yesterday has now been released.
Law enforcement officials have not named any other suspects so far or come up with any potential motives.
And the mayor of Providence, where Brown is located, said officials had no way of knowing if the attacker was still in the city.
And with that, several private schools in the area canceled classes today, while public schools stayed open with an increased police presence, and the University of Rhode Island canc elled all in-person exams.
And other universities in the region, like Harvard and Yale, have boosted their security presence.
