Gia Giudice is once again fighting for her family, this time by publicly asking former President Donald Trump for help in bringing her father, Joe Giudice, back to the United States.
In a recent interview with Fox News Digital, Gia opened up alongside her mother, Real Housewives of New Jersey star Teresa Giudice, about their ongoing efforts to reunite their family. Joe Giudice was deported to Italy in 2019 following a 41-month sentence for federal fraud charges. Although Joe has since relocated to the Bahamas, he remains unable to return to the U.S., where he spent nearly his entire life.
Gia revealed that her family found renewed hope after seeing Todd and Julie Chrisley receive pardons from Trump and be released from prison.
“The Chrisley family was blessed to have their family reunited again,” Gia said. “I know every situation is different, but it kind of gave our family hope. We were kind of in a rut. For the time being. My dad is in the Bahamas, and we were kind of just like, I guess it is what it is.”
That inspiration moved Gia to take action.
“And then when we saw that with the Chrisley family, it kind of gave us hope and inspired my dad to push a little bit on social media. I decided to make a video and, at the end of the day, we just want our dad home and that’s all that it is, and I think any daughter, son, family member would want that for their family as well.”
Joe’s deportation stemmed from legal technicalities. Despite moving to the U.S. as a baby, he never became a naturalized citizen and was instead living under a green card. After his conviction and release, ICE detained and deported him under immigration rules that prohibit non-citizens with certain felony convictions from remaining in the country.
Even though Teresa and Joe are no longer together, she remains supportive of his return.
“Even though Joe and I are not together, I would love for him to come back to America,” Teresa said. “I feel like he does belong here. He’s been here since he was one… And it was paperwork that he went away for. I’m hopeful too, that he comes back.”
Gia’s appeal to Trump has so far gone unanswered. Still, Teresa remains proud of her daughter’s efforts.
“I’m proud of her,” Teresa told Fox News Digital.
In addition to advocating for their family, Gia and Teresa have been pushing themselves physically and mentally on the upcoming season of FOX’s Special Forces: World’s Toughest Test, which premieres September 25 at 9 p.m. ET/PT. The mother-daughter duo will be seen competing together in what they described as one of the most grueling experiences of their lives.
“You can’t prepare. I thought I was prepared for this because I’ve done fitness competitions and I work out all the time and I lift heavy weights, but nothing could compare,” Teresa said. “Unless you’re in the Navy SEALs, in the army, then you know what this is all about. I mean it was really no joke. But I’m glad we had each other because we definitely motivated each other and I mean we are close, but this bonded us even closer, and it is something that we’ll never forget.”
Gia echoed that sentiment and recalled one moment in particular that pushed her to the brink.
“This hike took over an hour. It was crazy. It came to the point where I couldn’t feel my legs. I was so fatigued, and then we got to the top of the mountain, and we thought it was going to be over, but we had to do a challenge,” she explained. “Like, it was so scary. That was the worst day. I really thought I was going to quit that day, and I didn’t. But yeah, that was a rough day for me.”
Despite the challenges, both women say they walked away with new skills and perspectives. Teresa even learned how to swim during filming.
“I don’t have anxiety anymore, which is amazing,” Gia said, adding that she “definitely learned a lot about myself and built amazing friendships.”
