Former US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi speaks to reporters after a campaign event in support of Proposition 50 in San Francisco, US on November 3, 2025. Photo: VCG

US President Donald Trump on Thursday said the retirement of former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is a great thing for America, calling her "evil" and "overrated" when asked to comment on her retirement announcement, multiple US media outlets reported. 

"The retirement of Nancy Pelosi is a great thing for America," Trump said in a text message to Fox News journalist Peter Doocy, who read out the president's reaction on air.

"She was evil, corrupt, and only focused on bad things for our country. She was rapidly losing control of her party, and it was never coming back. I'm very honored that she impeached me twice and failed miserably twice," Doocy quoted Trump as saying, adding that "Nancy Pelosi is a highly overrated politician."

In the Oval Office during a news conference on reducing the cost of weight loss drugs for Americans, Trump also said "I'm glad she's retiring," as he took reporter questions, ABC News reported. 

"I think she did the country a great service by retiring," Trump continued. "I think she was a tremendous liability for the country. I thought she was an evil woman who did a poor job, who cost the country a lot in damages and in reputation. I thought she was terrible," Trump told reporters, according to ABC news.

Pelosi announced Thursday that she will retire at the end of her current term in Congress, which ends on January 3, 2027. "I will not be seeking reelection to Congress," Pelosi said in a video message, according to ABC news.

Trump and Pelosi have long had a contentious relationship marked by frequent political clashes and personal attacks. ABC News described Pelosi as "one of Trump's fiercest critics." She presided over both of Trump's impeachments, went viral for ripping up a copy of Trump's State of the Union speech as she stood behind him in 2020, and did not attend Trump's inauguration this January.

Global Times