Ellen DeGeneres on Hollywood Blvd where she was honored with the 2,477th star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame on Sept. 4, 2012. (Photo credit: Featureflash Photo Agency / Shutterstock)
A columnist scrutinized American celebrities who fled President Donald Trump's second term and have considered returning now that winter is approaching in the United Kingdom.
The Guardian's Arwa Mahdawi wrote in a column on Tuesday how it's rumored that Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi are reconsidering their Cotswolds residence as the temperature has started to dip.
"Now that the winter gloom has set in, however, rumour has it that the fairweather Brits are plotting a return to Trumpland," Mahdawi wrote. "According to the Mail on Sunday (so take all this with a few pinches of salt), the couple miss their friends and can’t stand the thought of another British winter. I understand being homesick, but you lose a bit of street cred if you flee creeping fascism only to run straight back to it because you’re not used to being a bit chilly."
The celebrity couple was among several who have decided to leave the U.S. following the election, including Rosie O'Donnell, a longtime Trump foe who cited her nonbinary child — and concern over safety and equal rights — as part of the reason she crossed the pond.
"While it’s easy to make fun of self-deporting celebrities – many of whom are insulated by their wealth from the effects of Trumpism – O’Donnell was probably sensible to leave," Mahdawi wrote. "The comedian has been in a long-running feud with Trump and, earlier this year, the president said he was considering stripping her of her US citizenship. He might not be able to do this legally, but when a man with a cult-like following is calling you out in a country with escalating political violence, it’s natural to feel worried for your personal safety."
The trend hasn't only struck celebrities.
New polling in the journal Nature has shown that 75% of researchers in the US have considered leaving and more international students are less interested in studying in the country.
"There may not be a massive celebrity exodus yet, but the US does seem to be experiencing a brain drain because of Trump," Mahdawi added.