President Trump had a special dinner guest Tuesday night – the former Navy SEAL who killed Osama sin Laden.
Rob O’Neil posted a picture on social media Wednesday morning, showing him on the White House South Lawn at night with his new wife, Jessica.
‘Nice dinner with @jessical_oneill at 1600. @realDonaldTrump is a great host,’ O’Neill wrote.
O’Neill was part of SEAL Team Six, which stormed Osama bin Laden’s secret Pakistan compound on May 2011. He fired the fatal shots that killed the Al Qaeda leader.
Rob O’Neill (left), the former Navy SEAL who killed Osama bin Laden, had dinner at the White House Tuesday night, along with his new wife Jessica (right)
O’Neill posted a picture of him and his wife posing on the South Lawn at night Wednesday morning, along with the above message
He also took part in the headline-making mission to rescue the crew of the Mearsk Alabama, after they were taken hostage by Somali pirates in 2009. The incident was profiled in the Tom Hanks film Captain Phillips.
O’Neil retired from the military in 2012, and two years later, identified himself as the SEAL who killed Bin Laden in an interview with Fox News. He now works for the network as a contributor.
A conservative, O’Neill was a supporter of Trump during the presidential race – but he has also spoken highly of former President Obama, a Democrat.
‘He made the right call with Captain Phillips and he made the right call with bin Laden. The two times I’ve been directly associated with a decision that he made, he made the right call,’ O’Neill said of Obama in a 2015 interview with The Sunday Times.
This past summer, O’Neil, 41, married 27-year-old Jessica Halpin in a lavish wedding on Cape Cod attended by the likes of Kid Rock, a close friend of the former SEAL. He was married once previously, and had kids, but divorced after returning to civilian life.
O’Neill, who now works for Fox News, was a supporter of Trump during the presidential campaign. The two pictured above in an Instagram post
In an exclusive interview with DailyMail TV, the couple told the story of how they met and fell in love.
Rob and Jessica first met after the retired SEAL, who is now a sought-after public speaker, was hired for a conference in April 2015 organized by the power line company that Jessica works for.
Initially, Jessica tried to talk her boss out of hiring Rob. ‘I wanted to hire Frank Abagnale, the guy who inspired the Leonardo DiCaprio movie, Catch Me If You Can.
‘I went to tell my boss that I had found the perfect speaker but I was told we were hiring Rob O’Neill. I had to ask who he was.’
Rob added: ‘Jessica’s boss didn’t want to hire a con-man for a leadership seminar, so I lucked out. She really didn’t care for me, I wasn’t the first choice.’
Jessica said that when they first met, she was unaware of Rob’s newly-acquired fame as the man who killed bin Laden.
‘I remember a one-page description about him,’ she said. ‘It didn’t say anything about the [bin Laden] raid.’
O’Neill (right) was part of the SEAL team that raided Bin Laden’s (left) Pakistan compound in 2012. O’Neill fired the fatal shots because he was one of the first sailors into the room where Bin Laden was hiding
She said that she really took notice when he started to speak.
‘He is just an incredible speaker,’ Jessica said. ‘You could tell he was funny and interesting. My friend and I were going for a drink after the conference and we invited him. He asked for my number.’
The Navy SEAL had also found himself a little bit smitten.
He said: ‘She was hosting me and taking me around the conference. When I got on stage to make my speech, I meant to thank the industry and her boss but I only thanked Jessica.’
The couple’s first date took place in New York in summer 2015. Rob said: ‘We were sitting at a bar and after 15 minutes of talking to her I realized that I had never laughed so hard. It was a wonderful night.
‘I didn’t even try to kiss her, I thought there was no way she was interested in me but it was such a great date. I knew I’d never forget it.’
Jessica admitted she also knew it was something special. ‘I remember going home after the date and feeling sad because it would have to be a long-distance relationship.’
Soon texts were flying back and forth, the pair bonding over their shared sense of humor and comedies.
Rob said: ‘We were not talking about politics and foreign policy on our first date. We were talking nonsense and drinking some kick-ass Manhattans. We love the same ridiculous movies. Every flight we take, we watch Get Him to the Greek.’
Jessica said: ‘It’s our favorite movie. I can’t count the number of times we talked about it.’
There was also their mutual love of sports – just don’t ask them to agree on the same team. Rob, from Butte, Montana, is a die-hard Washington Redskins fan while Jessica was raised in Massachusetts.
‘I was born into a legacy,’ she quipped.
This summer, O’Neill (left) married 27-year-old Jessica Halpin in a lavish ceremony on Cape Cod
‘We like to go to pro-sporting events and we are friends with the Miami Dolphins. We go to the Boston Red Sox and try to catch Yankees games,’ Rob said.
Suddenly, the veteran was finding a lot more reasons to spend time on the East Coast. He said: ‘I would get an offer for a speech with a small budget. If it was in New York, I would sign the contract right away.
‘Then I would call Jess and tell her I had a speech.’
The couple grew close quickly and Jessica began traveling with Rob to work events, learning more about his past with every speech.
‘I met him after he was a Navy SEAL and so when I listened to his speeches, I learned more about him and where he’s had to be very tough,’ she said.
‘I was young when the Twin Towers came down and now I’ve met people that it has directly affected. The way they respond to Rob’s story is incredible. He is able to give people closure. It makes me very proud of him.’
She added: ‘But he’s also the funniest person I know and most of his SEAL friends are incredibly funny.
‘He has a really big heart, he’s very sweet and very generous. He will do anything for anyone.’