McGregor’s White House Tirade on Irish Migration Crisis

On March 17, 2025, Conor McGregor, the former UFC champion and polarizing Irish figure, took to the White House briefing room podium on St. Patrick’s Day to deliver an impassioned tirade about a migration crisis in Ireland. He says smaller areas are now minorities in their own country.

Watch the video here:

Standing alongside White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, McGregor lambasted the Irish government, accusing it of abandoning its citizens and allowing an “illegal immigration racket” to overrun rural towns. His remarks, steeped in nationalist rhetoric, warned that Ireland risked losing its cultural identity, or “Irishness,” as he put it, claiming that native Irish were becoming minorities in their own communities “in one swoop.” McGregor framed his appearance as a plea to the United States—Ireland’s “big sibling”—to intervene and preserve a homeland for the 40 million Irish-Americans who might wish to visit.

McGregor’s White House outburst drew sharp rebukes from Irish leadership, including Prime Minister Micheál Martin and Deputy Prime Minister Simon Harris, who swiftly distanced themselves from his views. Martin condemned the comments as misaligned with the spirit of St. Patrick’s Day—a celebration of community and fellowship—asserting they did not reflect the sentiments of the Irish people. Harris echoed this, emphasizing that McGregor lacked any mandate to represent Ireland on the global stage. The fighter’s claims of towns being “overrun” and his broader anti-immigration stance clash with Ireland’s historical self-image as a welcoming nation, though the country has faced challenges accommodating a surge in asylum seekers in recent years, fueling some domestic tensions. McGregor’s rhetoric, however, amplified these issues into a dramatic narrative of cultural collapse, resonating with his populist leanings and his vocal admiration for President Donald Trump, who had praised him days earlier.