Former Real Housewives of New Jersey star Caroline Manzo, 57, had nothing but nice words to say about Joe Giudice, 46, following the news of his deportation appeal being denied. The Friendly Monkey Soap maker told HollywoodLife EXCLUSIVELY, “That breaks my heart. It absolutely breaks my heart. I don’t understand it. He paid his dues. I understand the legality of it, but it’s not like he came [to The United States from Italy] when he was 20 or 30 – he came here as an infant. Yes, he should’ve done what he needed to do as far as paperwork goes, but in hindsight, whatever.”
Caroline continued, “His children adore him. He adores his children. I think those children have suffered entirely too much. My heart is broken for those kids and for Joe because they deserve their father back and I wish things were different but what can you do? I just think it’s a very, very sad situation.”
“If there was a way that I could snap my fingers and say, ‘OK, listen, let’s wipe this all away and let him go home to his girls,’ I would, but there isn’t and unfortunately it is what it is but I think about them all of the time and I worry about them and I’d be very sad for them because they deserve to have their father back,” Caroline said.
She formerly had been on RHONJ from the start of the show, and left the Bravo reality show before the sixth season. Caroline then had three seasons of her own Bravo reality TV show, titled Manzo’d with Children. Caroline and Teresa Giudice, 46, infamously don’t like each other, but Caroline’s sister Dina is close with Joe’s wife. Joe’s appeal was denied by the Board of Immigration Appeals on April 6, and he found out via mail.