Hassling Hostin: Hasselbeck Confronts Hypocrite Hostin Supporting Obama in Libya

Nicholas Fondacaro
March 5th, 2026 3:48 PM

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Continuing to be the proper Republican counterpoint to the rest of the far-left table that had been missing in the show for years, guest co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck confronted co-host Sunny Hostin for her naked hypocrisy when it came to wars, during Thursday’s edition of The View. This time, she called out Hostin for decrying President Trump’s military action in Iran as “illegal” despite her previous support for President Obama going into Libya without congressional approval.

Following Hostin “calling it illegal, unconstitutional attack” on Iran, Hasselbeck wanted to know if she was “complaining” when Obama didn’t get approval to attack Libya but instead had his DOJ vouch that it was perfectly fine:

Did you believe it was illegal in August of 2011 when Office of Legal Counsel memo stated from President Obama stated that the president constitutional authority to direct the use of military force in Libya, because you could reasonably determine that such use of force was in the national interest prior -- congressional approval was not constitutionally required to use military force in these operations.

Where were you then complaining?

Of course, Hostin admitted she “agreed” with how Obama chose to do things “because Office of Legal Counsel was involved.” Never explaining how the approval Office of Legal Counsel equaled that of Congress’s, Hostin defended Obama and shouted about how Trump was supposedly acting like a “king”:

But the Office of Legal Counsel is the office in the Department of Justice because I worked at the Department of Justice that reviews these things and makes legal determinations. This president doesn't go through Office of Legal Counsel. This president does not go to Congress. Congress has the power to enact -- to approve wars, this Congress has the power of the purse. This president is acting more like a king than anything else.

 

 

“We haven't used that power since Truman,” Hasselbeck shot back, noting how Congress had long since abdicated its duty. “I don't think that this was done appropriately. I maintain that this is illegal and unconstitutional,” Hostin declared.

Hostin was so blinded by rage that a simple question from Hasselbeck got her to admit she sided with Iran and didn’t like that Ayatollah Khamenei and many mullahs were eliminated (Click “expand”):

HASSELBECK: Do you like the result? Do you like the result?

HOSTIN: No, I don't.

[Crosstalk]

HASSELBECK: So, you would rather the regime head and those 40-50 leaders would have stayed in place.

HOSTIN: Because I think it's easier to start a war, very difficult to end one.

To quell the shellacking Hostin was receiving, moderator Whoopi Goldberg stepped in to call a commercial timeout. But commercial breaks don’t last forever.

When they came back, co-host Sara Haines jumped in and piled it on Hostin by noting that the U.S. had taken part in and started several conflicts without congressional approval:

In regard to what Sunny's saying about it being an illegal war, every modern president since Reagan has done this, attacks from Syria, Libya, Bosnia, Panama. So, it happens continually to give it context. (…) And I have a lot of criticisms on Congress, and this is one of them. If you want to be part of the conversation, don't hand your power over to the president, which they have done.

 

 

Haines reiterated her point from earlier in the week that she trusted the military leaders who said this action was justified and needed (Click “expand”):

But then the last thing is the other day I talked about whereas administrations change and it's always political, I trust often the generals in the military.

74 retired U.S. generals and admirals came out endorsing this operation and saying that since its inception 47 years ago, they have been -- this regime has endangered lives of U.S. troops, diplomats, civilians across the Middle East and here at home, death to America, death to Israel is a chant they have used over and over.

I trust that these career military generals, you can't be I general if you haven't served the whole time. These career general they have seen stuff we haven't seen and the fact they're coming out to say, you guys, this needed to happen, I do trust that.

Hasselbeck seemingly forced a second commercial break by calling out the Obama administration for their secret deal with Iran and how giving them billions of dollars helped their nuclear and missile ambitions:

HASSELBECK: This is a geopolitical move of brilliance. It will be painful in the short term. We will absolutely choke down China's oil access from Iran. We've done it with Venezuela.

The Obama administration actually paid for the development of these nukes at some point. We have had imminent threat, thousands of Americans have been killed by this regime.

[Crosstalk]

HOSTIN: That's not imminent. That is not an imminent threat.

BEHAR: Elisabeth, are you willing to send boys and girls -

[Crosstalk]

GOLDBERG: We're going to go to break so that I can stay on and keep everybody off my ass. We'll be right back.

Notice how Behar was desperately trying to take a moral gab.

 

 

Hostin really doesn’t care about getting congressional approval when it’s a foreign interventions she cared about. In 2022, she demanded that President Biden install a no-fly zone over Ukraine and touted how it was done in conflicts that didn’t get congressional approval: “And in terms of the no-fly zone, we've done it before. We did it in Iraq. We did it in Bosnia. We did it in Libya, and we did it because we had a coalition.”

The transcript is below. Click "expand" to read:

ABC’s The View
March 5, 2026
11:09:41 a.m. Eastern

ELISABETH HASSELBECK: I want to ask you why you keep calling this like an undocumented attack. You don't agree with the war --

[Crosstalk]

SUNNY HOSTIN: I'm calling it illegal, unconstitutional attack.

HASSELBECK: Did you believe it was illegal in August of 2011 when Office of Legal Counsel memo stated from President Obama stated that the president constitutional authority to direct the use of military force in Libya, because you could reasonably determine that such use of force was in the national interest prior -- congressional approval was not constitutionally required to use military force in these operations.

Where were you then complaining?

HOSTIN: I agreed -- Well, I wasn't on the show then.

HASSELBECK: No, but personally since you --

[Crosstalk]

JOY BEHAR: she was at home complaining.

HOSTIN: I was at home complaining. No, I wasn't home complaining,

HASSELBECK: Do you have a problem with that?

HOSTIN: because Office of Legal Counsel was involved. And Office of Legal Counsel -

HASSELBECK: This came after.

HOSTIN: But the Office of Legal Counsel is the office in the Department of Justice because I worked at the Department of Justice that reviews these things and makes legal determinations. This president doesn't go through Office of Legal Counsel. This president does not go to Congress. Congress has the power to enact -- to approve wars, this Congress has the power of the purse. This president is acting more like a king than anything else.

HASELBECK: We haven't used that power since Truman.

HOSTIN: He's the commander-in-chief, but he is not a king. And so, I think this should have gone through Congress. I think that American -- the American embassies should have been notified so American citizens --

[Crosstalk]

HOSTIN: - would have been able to get to safety. I don't think that this was done appropriately. I maintain that this is illegal and unconstitutional. But I -

HASSELBECK: Do you like the result? Do you like the result?

HOSTIN: No, I don't.

[Crosstalk]

HASSELBECK: So, you would rather the regime head and those 40-50 leaders would have stayed in place.

HOSTIN: Because I think it's easier to start a war, very difficult to end one.

WHOOPI GOLDBERG: Okay since this is going to be a longer conversation - Since this is going to be a longer conversation, we're going to take a break.

(…)

11:16:08 a.m. Eastern

SARA HAINES: In regard to what Sunny's saying about it being an illegal war, every modern president since Reagan has done this, attacks from Syria, Libya, Bosnia, Panama. So, it happens continually to give it context. The other thing is -

BEHAR: What does.

HAINES: That Congress has ceded this power a long time ago. And I have a lot of criticisms on Congress, and this is one of them. If you want to be part of the conversation, don't hand your power over to the president, which they have done.

Two, the travel policy. I wanted to look it up because there’s a lot of Americans stranded. It ends up since the '70s that the government has put countries on certain warning labels like beware but also it is not the government's responsibility. They won't have the capacity to bring everyone back. They've changed that because that number was not -- they had a number you were supposed to call.

[Crosstalk]

HAINES: But then the last thing is the other day I talked about whereas administrations change and it's always political, I trust often the generals in the military.

74 retired U.S. generals and admirals came out endorsing this operation and saying that since its inception 47 years ago, they have been -- this regime has endangered lives of U.S. troops, diplomats, civilians across the Middle East and here at home, death to America, death to Israel is a chant they have used over and over.

I trust that these career military generals, you can't be I general if you haven't served the whole time. These career general they have seen stuff we haven't seen and the fact they're coming out to say, you guys, this needed to happen, I do trust that.

(…)

11:19:33 a.m. Eastern

HASSELBECK: This is a geopolitical move of brilliance. It will be painful in the short term. We will absolutely choke down China's oil access from Iran. We've done it with Venezuela.

The Obama administration actually paid for the development of these nukes at some point. We have had imminent threat, thousands of Americans have been killed by this regime.

[Crosstalk]

HOSTIN: That's not imminent. That is not an imminent threat.

BEHAR: Elisabeth, are you willing to send boys and girls -

[Crosstalk]

GOLDBERG: We're going to go to break so that I can stay on and keep everybody off my ass. We'll be right back.

BEHAR: Are you willing to - [Gets played off]

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