Fact Check: Bruce Springsteen Said He'll Leave US if Trump Reelected in 2024?

Claim:

Bruce Springsteen said he will leave the U.S. if former President Donald Trump is reelected in 2024.

Rating:

Outdated ( About this rating? )

Context:

Bruce Springsteen, who has long supported the Democratic Party, once told Australian newspaper The Daily Telegraph he would be "on the next plane" Down Under if Trump won the 2020 presidential election. However, we found no evidence he said he would leave the U.S. if Trump wins in 2024.

On July 11, 2024, a popular X post from the account " Israel & USA forever " claimed American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen announced "he will leave the United States if Donald Trump is elected President in 2024!"

Israel & USA forever/X

As of this writing, the post had amassed more than 6.7 million views and 53,000 comments, with many users urging Springsteen, also known as "The Boss," to follow through with the idea and permanently leave the U.S.A., the country where he was famously born.

"Go quietly into the good night… and take Barbra Streisand, Jane Fonda and Taylor Swift with you," one X user said, to which another responded: "This guy is famous for writing and singing songs about how proud he is to be 'Born in the USA'. How can he support an administration that is flooding the US with millions of illegals??"

A similar sentiment was shared to X in November 2023, which amassed nearly 50,000 views. That user wrote: "BREAKING: Bruce Springsteen, Madonna, and Taylor Swift say they will leave the United States if Donald Trump becomes President in 2024."

However, this rumor was outdated. Springsteen, who has long supported the Democratic Party, did speak out against the Trump presidency in an October 2020 interview with Australian newspaper The Daily Telegraph . He told the publication he would leave the U.S. for Australia if Trump won that year's presidential election:

If Trump is re-elected – which he will not be; I'm predicting right now he's gonna lose – if by some happenstance he should be, I'll see you on the next plane.

It was unclear whether this statement was meant to be taken seriously.

Yet not only did no reputable news outlet report on Springsteen making such a statement ahead of the 2024 election, but both X posts resembled engagement bait, an attempt to bring in responses, shares and likes, based on something false about a current controversial topic people feel strong emotions about — namely, the 2024 U.S. presidential election and former President Trump being the Republican nominee.

In a 2019 interview with " CBS Mornings " co-host Gayle King, that took place during Trump's presidency, "The Boss" voiced his concerns about Trump as a leader, telling King: "The stewardship of the nation is — it's been thrown away to somebody who doesn't have a clue as to what that means, and unfortunately [we] have somebody who I feel doesn't have a grasp of the deep meaning of what it means to be an American."

He also told The Atlantic in a 2020 interview that "our current president is a threat to our democracy. He simply makes any kind of reform that much harder. I don't know if our democracy could stand another four years of his custodianship."

However, Springsteen has also been critical of the Democratic Party. In the same interview with The Atlantic, he admitted: "The Democrats haven't really made the preservation of the middle and working class enough of a priority."

Trump has also taken public jabs at Springsteen. In a May 2024 campaign rally in Springsteen's home state, New Jersey, according to multiple news outlets , Trump reportedly told the crowd:

I love these Saturday evenings. Is there anything better than a Trump rally? If some of these wackos came along, you know, these liberal singers, they'd actually vote for me. You know, like Bruce Springsteen. We have a much bigger crowd than Bruce Springsteen. Right?

Snopes reached out to Springsteen's representatives, who did not immediately return a request for comment.

For further reading, Snopes previously fact-checked claims involving both Springsteen and Trump. In 2017, we fact-checked claims Springsteen wrote an open letter apologizing for letting Trump become president, and another false claim he called Trump an "a**hole" on Twitter .

Sources:

Aswad, Jem. "Bruce Springsteen Talks Politics, Marriage and Why He Won't Write an 'Anti-Trump Diatribe.'" Variety , 3 Oct. 2017, https://variety.com/2017/music/news/bruce-springsteen-politics-trump-marriage-1202576624/. "Brian Hiatt." Rolling Stone , https://www.rollingstone.com/author/brian-hiatt/. Accessed 17 July 2024. Brooks, David. "Bruce Springsteen's Playlist for the Trump Era." The Atlantic , 23 June 2020, https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/06/bruce-springsteens-playlist/613378/. CBS Mornings. Bruce Springsteen: President Trump "Doesn't Have a Grasp" on What It Means to Be American . 2019. YouTube , https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m8ar38jz--Q. Culture, Ryan Smith Senior Pop, and Entertainment Reporter. "Fact Check: Is Bruce Springsteen Moving to Australia Because of Trump?" Newsweek , 27 Nov. 2023, https://www.newsweek.com/bruce-springsteen-moving-australia-donald-trump-election-1847232. "Donald Trump Faces Flak as He Declares 'We'Ll Win New Jersey' after Insulting Bruce Springsteen." Hindustan Times , 12 May 2024, https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/us-news/donald-trump-faces-flak-as-he-declares-we-ll-win-new-jersey-after-insulting-bruce-springsteen-101715509382051.html. "---." Hindustan Times , 12 May 2024, https://www.hindustantimes.com/world-news/us-news/donald-trump-faces-flak-as-he-declares-we-ll-win-new-jersey-after-insulting-bruce-springsteen-101715509382051.html. Editor, Gabe Whisnant Deputy Weekend. "Donald Trump Takes Jab at Bruce Springsteen at Massive New Jersey Rally." Newsweek , 11 May 2024, https://www.newsweek.com/donald-trump-takes-jab-bruce-springsteen-massive-new-jersey-shore-wildwood-rally-1899613. Hiatt, Brian. Bruce Springsteen: The Stories Behind the Songs . 1st ed., Abrams, 2019, https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/bruce-springsteen-brian-hiatt/1129230359. Kurtz, Judy. "Bruce Springsteen: I'll Be 'on the next Plane' to Australia If Trump Wins." The Hill , Nexstar Media Inc., 16 Oct. 2020, https://thehill.com/blogs/in-the-know/in-the-know/521384-bruce-springsteen-ill-be-on-the-next-plane-to-australia-if/. "Springsteen Fans Roast Trump For Bizarre Boast About Size Of New Jersey Crowd." Yahoo News , 12 May 2024, https://ca.news.yahoo.com/springsteen-fans-roast-trump-bizarre-201418976.html. Tannenbaum, Rob. "Bruce Springsteen Is Democratic Party Royalty. Is He Also a Symbol of Its Decline?" Los Angeles Times , 17 Nov. 2021, https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/music/story/2021-11-17/bruce-springsteen-barack-obama-politics-no-nukes. "Trump Blasted by Springsteen Fans as Taunts Star about Crowd Size at Rally." The Independent , 13 May 2024, https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/trump-rally-bruce-springsteen-jersey-b2544026.html. "X.Com." X (Formerly Twitter) , https://x.com/hiattb/status/1813300089164648593. Accessed 17 July 2024.