Mick Foley has opened up about why he chose to walk away from WWE, revealing that the company’s perceived ties to U.S. President Donald Trump ultimately pushed him to make the decision.

Speaking during an appearance on The Ariel Helwani Show, Foley explained that a series of events led him to reconsider his association with WWE, but one particular incident became the tipping point. According to Foley, comments made by Trump regarding the death of filmmaker Rob Reiner and his wife Michele deeply troubled him and forced him to reflect on where he stood.

Foley compared his decision to a windshield slowly cracking under repeated strikes.

“Well, everyone has to make the decision that feels right to them. I sometimes describe someone’s big break as being more like a series of little breaks, like a ball-peen hammer and a windshield. You don’t know which tap actually causes the crack, but without a multitude of them, that windshield’s not cracking at all. So for me, it was the comments about Rob Reiner. Just heartless, unbelievably cruel comments coming from the most powerful man in the world, finding joy in how somebody died,” Mick Foley said.

He continued by explaining that those remarks were the final factor that convinced him he could no longer remain silent.

“I don’t want to paraphrase, but belittling the man who just died, somehow tying his own death into Reiner’s dislike of Donald Trump. For me, that was the ball-peen hammer tap that broke the windshield. I just think WWE had a very cozy relationship where there was definitely the illusion of a relationship there, the perception rather,” Foley added.

The WWE Hall of Famer also pointed to several public interactions between Trump and WWE personalities over the years, saying that those moments contributed to the perception of a close connection between the two sides.

“I think when five different people are posing in the Oval Office, and they’ve all received Stone Cold Stunners, that’s a little cozy. And Ariel, I felt like even though I wasn’t technically employed by the company, but because I had a legends deal, because my name’s been associated with WWE for over 30 years, that I was complicit in my silence. And so I did speak up,” he said.

Foley noted that ending his Legends agreement came with a financial sacrifice, particularly after turning down opportunities connected to WrestleMania week. However, he said he has no regrets about the choice he made.

“I reached out to the head of talent relations, who I consider a friend, who I still write handwritten letters from Santa to every year, and send the videos out. So basically, I give up the legend’s deal that runs out at the end of this month. I realized that by giving up two really easy, very high-paying jobs at WrestleMania week for WWE that I had to work 24 hours on my own to make what I could have at six. And I’m okay with that. So I’m good with my decision,” Foley continued.

While stressing that he still has affection for WWE and the people within the company, Foley said his decision was ultimately about staying true to his personal beliefs and setting an example for future generations of his family.

“Everyone, I think, has to make a decision that’s right for them, and in my case, I just didn’t want to be in a position where my grandchildren are asking what their grandfather was doing when things were really tough. And I want my children to be able to say, this is what grandpa did. So I made the move that I felt was right for me. I love that company. I’m not going to disparage them. But it didn’t seem like a good fit. Didn’t seem like a fit that would allow me to look at myself in the mirror before I went to bed,” Mick Foley concluded.