Nancy Sinatra publicly corrected a supporter of President Donald Trump this week after they claimed her father, Frank Sinatra, would have backed the president.
The online exchange added to a wider debate already sparked by Trump’s Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller, who commented on immigration while watching a Frank Sinatra Christmas special with his children.
Highlights
- Nancy Sinatra firmly stated that her father, Frank Sinatra, loathed Donald Trump and would not have voted for him.
- Frank Sinatra was a lifelong registered Democrat who occasionally voted Republican for Nixon and Reagan.
- Frank Sinatra reportedly ended a deal with Trump over high-performance fees, fueling his dislike of the president.
When a Trump supporter insisted Frank Sinatra would have supported Trump, Nancy Sinatra quickly came to reply that her father would indeed not.
Frank Sinatra’s daughter said her father would not have voted for Trump
Nancy Sinatra. Image credits: Tabatha Fireman/Getty Images
In fact, she went on to say that Sinatra “loathed” Trump. “Do some homework before you make a fool of yourself,” she told the X user.
In a December 29 post, she wrote that her father was a registered Democrat. “Frank was a registered Democrat all of his life. He did vote for a couple of Republicans over the decades: Nixon because of his stance on China and Reagan because they were very close friends.”
John F. Kennedy and Frank Sinatra. Image credits: Benjamin E. 'Gene' Forte/Getty Images
This is not Sinatra’s first time defending her father. In May, when an X user had claimed that Sinatra would have voted for Trump, she had quickly retorted, “Not a chance. You obviously don’t know my father at all. Do some homework before you post about him.”
According to Eliot Weisman’s book The Way It Was, Trump believed Sinatra’s fee to perform at his casino was too high. That’s when Sinatra allegedly told Trump to “Go f**k himself” and ended up playing at another casino instead. He apparently hated Trump since then.
Nancy Sinatra and Frank Sinatra. Image credits: Earl Leaf/Getty Images
Just days before Nancy Sinatra’s comments, Miller had remembered her father.
“Imagine watching that and thinking America needed infinity migrants from the third world,” Miller said on X, talking about Dean Martin and Frank Sinatra’s Family Christmas Show. The classic holiday TV special aired in 1967 and remains a favorite until today.
Nancy said her father ‘loathed’ Trump and was a registered Democrat
Miller’s post quickly gained criticism. Political commentator Richard Hanania asked, “Do you spend a single waking moment not seething over how much you hate immigrants.”
Another user, Rick G. Rosner, wrote, “Enjoy your racism grift while it lasts.”
Sarah Longwell, publisher of outlet The Bulwark, responded directly to Miller. She wrote that Dean Martin, born Dino Paul Crocetti, was the son of Italian immigrants himself. Sinatra was also the son of Italian immigrants.
“His Italian heritage deeply influenced him,” she wrote on X. She noted that Sinatra worked hard, “eventually becoming a beloved American icon with a unique charm rooted in his cultural background.”
Another X user chimed in, writing that Longwell had ruined “the vampire’s narrative.”
“Remember, don’t invite him in when he knocks on your window,” they joked.
A parody account styled after California Governor Gavin Newsom added, “Imagine watching a Christmas special by two American icons who are children of immigrants, and still finding a way to be Adolf Dracula about it.”
Deputy Chief of Staff Stephen Miller. Image credits: Gage Skidmore/Flickr
Italian immigrants faced discrimination in earlier periods of U.S. history. They were portrayed as uneducated and stereotypically linked to crime until the early 20th century.
They were sometimes met with hostility in hiring and housing. Over time, Italian American communities grew and contributed to American culture, with figures like Sinatra and Martin becoming household names.