"But I didn't say it. You know who said it? Those crappy cable shows said it. The ones Elisabeth watches. Those shows."
Hasselbeck harshly reacted to those comments and it prompted Rosie to personally attack her more.
HASSELBECK: I watch all cable news, number one. I watch all of the, because that's part of my job and as an American citizen I try to broaden as many concepts as possible by watching all those news programs, okay. I do, obviously, like, like certain shows. I'll throw them out if you want me to. Like "Hannity and Colmes," they're one of my favorites, because they hold debates [applause] They hold debates on that show and I think that is, that is like what we do here only, you know, we have four women. And I think it's special here. But to say that, you know, someone can't hold two thoughts at the same time just because I believe in terrorism when there are Democrats out there running for office who don’t want to believe in terrorism and they want to treat it like the boogeyman. How are they going to protect us from something--
O’DONNELL: I think that you’re treating it like the boogeyman. I think they've used it to polarize people. They’ve used it–
Earlier in the segment, Rosie answered to the charge that she called U.S. troops terrorists. Elisabeth followed up with a very pointed question.
O’DONNELL: Okay, I’ll say it a million times. I just think it's interesting that the network you support takes such joy in twisting my words and distorting them. I do not think our American troops are terrorists. I want our American troops home, able-bodied. [applause] I don't want them to invade countries that have done nothing to the- us. I don't want them to die at the hands of a Republican administration that doesn't care enough about them to give them health care when they return. I love our troops and will work for our troops and no matter what you say [bleeped out] I– and that's the truth. Change it around as you like.
[Applause]
HASSELBECK: But when you pose that question, what is the answer to the question? Who are the terrorists?
On the May 17 show, Rosie did not say explicitly "U.S. soldiers are terrorists," but she did heavily imply that the United States engages in terrorism. One can only conclude from those comments, that U.S. soldiers, following orders, are engaging in that terrorism as well. Here is the exchange from the May 17 edition of "The View."
HASSELBECK: Do you not believe in terrorism?
O’DONNELL: I believe, Elisabeth, that 6,000 dead Americans from 9/11 and from this war is a lot less than 655,000 dead Iraqis.
HASSELBECK: But do you believe in terrorism?
O’DONNELL: I believe every human life is equal.
HASSELBECK: Do you believe there is terrorism?
O’DONNELL: I believe in state sponsored terrorism. I believe there is government sponsored terrorism by every nation in the world, including ours.
Barbara Walters, perhaps in an effort to save her reputation, strongly reacted to Rosie, noting that terrorism (or "jihadism" as Walters called it) does indeed exist and is a threat.
WALTERS: But they’ve killed innocent civilians other places. What is happening in Iraq, I think everybody believes is horrific and we don't know how to get out of it. But that does not mean that there are not jihadists, terrorists, who are out to harm us and we must be aware of it.
BEHAR: That's right.
[Applause]
At one point, some audience members actually booed Rosie’s comments. Rosie, who admits to discriminating against men, dismissed the booing as coming from a man.
O’DONNELL: Of course it’s a man booing [laughing]
HASSELBECK: Oh. I’m a woman. I would boo too.
The entire transcript is below.
ROSIE O’DONNELL: The White House said he's becoming increasingly irrelevant.
ELISABETH HASSELBECK: Yes. Well, that was after his comment saying that this is the worst administration in U.S. history. Which he meant-
O’DONNELL: Which I totally agree with.
HASSELBECK: Well he actually took that back, interestingly enough-
[applause and boos]
O’DONNELL: Of course it’s a man booing [laughing]
HASSELBECK: Oh. I’m a woman. I would boo too.
[...]
O’DONNELL: Did you watch what they said about me? Did you watch them this weekend? They said Rosie O'Donnell thinks our troops are terrorists. What do you think about that?
JOY BEHAR: They said something like that on MSNBC.
O’DONNELL: Did you watch it?
ELISABETH HASSELBECK: I didn’t watch it this weekend. No, I wasn’t here this weekend. I was in Boston with my brother.
O’DONNELL: But you were here when we talked about it.
HASSELBECK: Yes
O’DONNELL: So do you think that, that's what I was saying in that conversation?
HASSELBECK: They're referring to --
O’DONNELL: No here’s what they said. They said Rosie O'Donnell thinks our troops are terrorists.
HASSELBECK: That's because you asked the question who are the terrorists if 650,000 Iraqis are dead, after we came in there and invaded a sovereign nation. I’m just trying to--
O’DONNELL: That was the conversation.
HASSELBECK: Maybe that they drew the link there.
O’DONNELL: They drew the link, or they misrepresented what I said in order to twist it to make it seem what they want.
[Applause]
HASSELBECK: What is the, what is the– No, so, so I would clarify it for them now because you have the opportunity. What– because I did read that a lot of people were thinking you said that. Answer your own question, then.
O’DONNELL: Okay, I’ll say it a million times. I just think it's interesting that the network you support takes such joy in twisting my words and distorting them. I do not think our American troops are terrorists. I want our American troops home, able-bodied. [applause] I don't want them to invade countries that have done nothing to the- us. I don't want them to die at the hands of a Republican administration that doesn't care enough about them to give them health care when they return. I love our troops and will work for our troops and no matter what you say [bleeped out] I– and that's the truth. Change it around as you like.
[Applause]
HASSELBECK: But when you pose that question, what is the answer to the question? Who are the terrorists?
BARBARA WALTERS: Can I just say something? Because I listened the other day. And I think that sometimes you're confusing the word "terrorists," because you said "who are terrorists" implying they could be us. What you really mean, I think, is jihadists. We are talking about a particular group of people.
O’DONNELL: I'm talking about a word, "terrorism," that the administration has used to terrify this country. They're terrorizing Americans by using the word "terror" and taking away or civil liberties.
HASSELBECK: All countries, all nations use the word "terrorist" to describe those which would use the name of Allah will blow someone else up, will blow children up. Those are jihadist, those are extremists--
WALTERS: Those are jihadists.
HASSELBECK: –Islamists who are trying to use their religion to justify killing hundreds of thousands. But when you ask--
[moderate applause]
O’DONNELL: All I’m saying is, do you not think we've killed hundreds of thousands?
HASSELBECK: In the name of what?
O’DONNELL: Invading Iraq.
HASSELBECK: So are you then calling us terrorists?
O’DONNELL: No, I just said it, Elisabeth. Are you not able to hold two concepts at once?
HASSELBECK: I can hold more than two, actually. I can hold more than two if you'd like me to. I would like you to hold the idea that there are people out there named terrorists --
O’DONNELL: There are pregnant women in Iraq just like you and I will speak for them and you.
HASSELBECK: They're not terrorists. They’re not terrorists. They’re nice women.
O’DONNELL: So we shouldn't be over there killing them.
WALTERS: That's different story than saying that Americans are terrorists.
O’DONNELL: But I didn't say it. You know who said it? Those crappy cable shows said it. The ones Elisabeth watches. Those shows
[boos]
HASSELBECK: I watch all cable news, number one. I watch all of the, because that's part of my job and as an American citizen I try to broaden as many concepts as possible by watching all those news programs, okay. I do, obviously, like, like certain shows. I'll throw them out if you want me to. Like "Hannity and Colmes," they're one of my favorites, because they hold debates [applause] They hold debates on that show and I think that is, that is like what we do here only, you know, we have four women. And I think it's special here. But to say that, you know, someone can't hold two thoughts at the same time just because I believe in terrorism when there are Democrats out there running for office who don’t want to believe in terrorism and they want to treat it like the boogeyman. How are they going to protect us from something--
O’DONNELL: I think that you’re treating it like the boogeyman. I think they've used it to polarize people. They’ve used it--
WALTERS: There are people, there are jihadists whose life work and will die for it, is primarily to attack the west.
O’DONNELL: Right. And so when Ron Paul says why is that? Do we have any role in that Barbara? Why is that? He's asking the question.
WALTERS: We can go back to the mistakes we made in the beginning of the war, and we have to learn from that, and we have to learn from them. But that does not mean that there is a whole body of jihadists not, not necessarily Muslim, you can not say that, of jihadists whose, whose life and death is wiping out the west.
O’DONNELL: But they're not innocent civilians in Iraq. There are innocent civilians in Iraq.
WALTERS: But they’ve killed innocent civilians other places. What is happening in Iraq, I think everybody believes is horrific and we don't know how to get out of it. But that does not mean that there are not jihadists, terrorists, who are out to harm us and we must be aware of it.
BEHAR: That's right.
[Applause]
