Topline
Podcast host Joe Rogan appeared to deepen his criticism of President Donald Trump, calling the possibility of a war with Venezuela a “terrible idea” while condemning Trump’s comments about actor and director Rob Reiner’s death, as Rogan further distanced himself from Trump during his shows this week.
The podcaster, who endorsed Trump in the lead-up to the 2024 election, has criticized the president a number of times over the last year.
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Key Facts
Rogan, who spoke during Thursday’s episode of the “Joe Rogan Experience” with comedian Shane Gillis, said he didn’t believe “anybody’s going to really support” further aggression against Venezuela, adding a war between the U.S. and the country “would be a terrible idea.”
Trump’s much-criticized post following Reiner’s death, which claimed Reiner died because of “Trump derangement syndrome,” was a “crazy thing to put out” and “not funny,” adding there’s “no justification for what [Trump] did that makes sense in a compassionate society.”
“When you see it with no empathy, that’s when it’s hard to like [Trump],” Rogan said, as both Rogan and Gillis likened Trump’s post to social media posts celebrating Charlie Kirk’s death.
Both comedians joked that, had former President Barack Obama made similar comments, it would have been “crazy,” and Rogan said it “just shows you how crazy it is, the way Trump thinks and talks.”
Rogan also criticized the plaques Trump added in the White House’s new Presidential Walk of Fame, which mock Trump’s predecessors, repeatedly calling the plaques “crazy” and that Trump “shouldn’t be allowed to do this.”
What Else Has Joe Rogan Said About Donald Trump?
Earlier this week, Rogan seemed to agree with comedian Tom Segura that Trump was “losing it,” to which Rogan said, “Well, I think everybody does, when you get to a certain age, right?” Rogan first criticized Trump’s plaques while speaking to Segura, saying there was “nothing nuttier” than the plaques while later questioning, “How are you allowed to do that?” In July, Rogan criticized Trump’s immigration crackdown as “crazy” and an “overcorrection,” and argued against the deportation of students critical of the Trump administration, saying, “Deporting people because you don’t like who they’re criticizing, that gets kind of shifty.” Rogan also criticized Trump for failing to release documents related to Jeffrey Epstein more quickly, claiming a push for their release was “part of how he got elected.”
Key Background
Rogan’s relationship with Trump deepened in the lead-up to the 2024 presidential election, during which Trump sat down for an interview with Rogan, who later endorsed him. Rogan, a comedian, UFC commentator and longtime host of the “Joe Rogan Experience,” one of the most-listened-to podcasts, attended Trump’s inauguration in January. He previously called Trump an “existential threat to democracy” in 2022, though Rogan later said he pushed Trump to be on his podcast after an assassination attempt on Trump in July 2024. Trump’s campaign was boosted by appearances on podcasts with male-leaning podcasts, including Rogan’s, comedian Andrew Schulz’s “Flagrant,” Barstool Sports’ “Bussin’ with the boys” and “This Past Weekend” with comedian Theo Von, as well as a livestream with streamer Adin Ross. His aggressive campaign in the “manosphere” podcasts was credited with drawing more young male voters to his campaign.
