In the spirit of the old saying, “Even a broken clock is right twice a day,” an exchange Wednesday on the progressive ABC talk show “The View” had one of the hosts actually say something reasonable.
Sunny Hostin bristled while describing her outrage that CNN was holding an on-air town hall for former President Donald Trump on May 10.
A surprising rebuttal came from co-host Joy Behar, who defended freedom of speech for a moment.
Behar supported CNN’s decision to give Trump — the 2024 Republican presidential front-runner — his own town hall-style event at 8 p.m. Eastern time.
“I would let them do it, it is a free country. This is America,” she said.
That was the about only moment of good sense on the topic in what was otherwise a reprehensible tirade of slurs by the biased panel. Even Behar slipped back into predictable leftist hate mode.
The Writers Guild of America strike, which began Tuesday, meant the ladies of “The View” did not have professionals available to script opinions for them to parrot.
Former actress and comedian Whoopi Goldberg shared the troubling update. “Well, as you know, there’s a writers strike going on, so we don’t have writers. So you’re going to hear how it would be when it’s not, you know, slicked up. OK?” Goldberg said.
The need for writers on a show that is presented as if it is a spontaneous conversation was quite a revelation.
Even with help, the ladies of “The View” often misspeak in serious ways. Newsbusters reported “The View” had to backtrack previous statements with three dozen on-air legal notices and clarifications in 2022.
On Thursday, Hostin launched into the topic of Trump’s town hall by presenting a good summary of the straw man they project whenever he is discussed.
Reacting to CNN’s offer of a forum to the former president, she said, “Well, that’s what I’m so disgusted by. Because, again, when someone shows you who they are, you believe them.
“When you show that you are an insurrectionist, that you’re a liar, that you’re a bigot, that you’re a racist, that you’re sexist, that you’re twice impeached, that you are currently a criminal defendant and likely to be a criminal defendant in two other jurisdictions … I know everything I need to know about you!”
Missing from those smears was any acknowledgment that those claims about Trump are the creation of establishment media propaganda and abuses by America’s two-tier system of justice.
Hostin made it clear she believes the former president should be silenced.
“I don’t think that you give that type of person a platform. You don’t do that,” she said, adding that she was “actually dismayed” the network would give a time slot to “one of the most destructive and divisive people.”
Behar spoke up to disagree with such pre-emptive censorship, prompting an incredulous Hostin to say, “What?”
“I can’t stand him, as you know. But he is the front-runner for the Republican Party,” Behar said, defending the former president’s appearance in the context of the American right to free speech.
Then Behar also turned to the comforting straw man Trump substitute, saying, “Let him go out there and let him show again to the American people that he is a sociopath.”
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She then continued to trash the former present.
Even though Behar had an agreeable moment, it does not undo her role as part of the anti-Trump and anti-Republican media machine.
But she was right in another way as well. America is still a free country, despite the efforts of Behar’s allies. Trump still gets to speak, and that scares the progressives to pieces.
No one is holding CNN hostage to do a town hall with Trump. If anything, the network is probably eager to do this event to try to boost its dismal ratings. Meanwhile, Trump draws an audience and might reach people who would not normally watch him. It really looks like a potential win-win situation.
Democrats used to champion free speech. Contemporary leftists do not. It’s a sad reality, but it must be pushed back against. The more they try to suppress us, the louder we need to get. Maybe then we will even find we have other areas of agreement.
This article appeared originally on The Western Journal.