‘Silence Is Complicity’: Behar, Hostin Demand Celebrities Bash Trump

Nicholas Fondacaro
May 13th, 2026 3:05 PM

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During Tuesday’s The View, co-hosts Joy Behar and Sunny Hostin were both joyless and gloomy as they lashed out at actor Billy Bob Thornton because an interview he did where he explained that he didn’t want to shove his politics down the throats of his fans. Behar, of all people, called Thornton “uninformed” as she asserted that “every minute” America was slipping closer to “autocracy.” From Hostin, we heard the nagging “silence is complicity” shtick.

What could Thornton had said that had them that outraged? This: “I don’t know anything about politics. I have no idea. I mean - and the stuff I believe about it, I don't want to force it down somebody else's throat because I'm not an expert on that.”

“Yeah, imagine bragging about how uninformed you are,” Behar sneered after the soundbite aired. “You've an American citizen. Don’t you watch the news? Don't you read the paper? Come on,” she scoffed.

If you’d like evidence of just how uniformed Behar was, click here and here.

Co-host Sara Haines tried to defend Thornton by arguing that celebrities didn’t need to “scream from the mountaintop what their thoughts are,” but Behar wasn’t having it:

HAINES: I do think the civic participation. Our vote is a privilege that so many have died for and fought for that to be participating in our political structure, you need to inform yourself enough to vote. I don't think that every celebrity needs to scream from the mountaintop what their thoughts are because I'd rather see them march door to door to recruit people voting and in your local government, helping people -

BEHAR: No, but they have an influence. I mean, Springsteen right now and Robert de Niro have big audiences.

 

 

“Use your platform! Use it!” Behar shouted. Haines shot back: “The only people applauding them though are people that agree with them.”

Hostin jumped into give Behar back up. She proclaimed that celebrities “have an obligation” to shove their politics down Americans’ throats because “we are at a crisis point in this country” and “you have a responsibility to speak up.”

Behar continued her incendiary and stochastic terrorist rhetoric about how the country was about to come crashing down any minute: “And every minute, every day we’re getting closer - Every day we get closer to a autocracy in this country! We're about to lose it! I think people don’t seem to understand what’s going on!”

Co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin also defended Thornton by arguing that what Behar and Hostin were doing was trying to “bully people into speaking out for people who don’t feel like they’re experts.” She also suggested it was leading to too many “uninformed takes right now.”

Haines backed her up by comparing it to “just get[ting] on Instagram and say[ing] ‘I hate Trump,’” with no substance.

 

 

“If now is not the time, I don't know when is. I don’t know when is,” Hostin chided while making a ridiculous face (pictured above).

“As one who can actually speak to this,” moderator Whoopi Goldberg spoke last and defended Thornton and extended it to other celebrities who didn’t want to wade into politics: “I'm not mad at you if this is not something you're comfortable doing, because you're doing something I don't know you're doing. I believe that people are taking care of business the way they need to.”

Additionally, Farah Griffin called them out for criticizing actor George Clooney for writing and op-ed calling out then-President Biden’s cognitive decline. “I didn’t,” Hostin declared.

But that was a big lie. Below is a video from July 11, 2024 of Hostin criticizing Clooney for his op-ed.

 

 

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

ABC’s The View
May 13, 2026
11:16:09 a.m. Eastern

(…)

BILLY BOB THORNTON: I don’t know anything about politics. I have no idea. I mean - and the stuff I believe about it, I don't want to force it down somebody else's throat because I'm not an expert on that.

[Cuts back to live]

WHOOPI GOLDBERG: All right.

JOY BEHAR: Yeah, imagine bragging about how uninformed you are.

SUNNY HOSTIN: Yeah.

BEHAR: You know?

SARA HAINES: Well, I think he's saying it’s more ‘I'm not an expert, so my opinion -‘

BEHAR: ‘I don't know anything about politics.’ You've an American citizen. Don’t you watch the news? Don't you read the paper? Come on.

HAINES: I do think the civic participation. Our vote is a privilege that so many have died for and fought for that to be participating in our political structure, you need to inform yourself enough to vote. I don't think that every celebrity needs to scream from the mountaintop what their thoughts are because I'd rather see them march door to door to recruit people voting and in your local government, helping people -

BEHAR: No, but they have an influence. I mean, Springsteen right now and Robert de Niro have big audiences.

[Crosstalk]

[Applause]

BEHAR (waving Haines off): And so does - Wait a minute! So does Jon Voight and Kid Rock. Okay? They have -- all of them have the right to speak out.

HAINES: They do.

[Crosstalk]

BEHAR: Use your platform! Use it!

HAINES: The only people applauding them though are people that agree with them.

HOSTIN: I think you have an obligation. We are at a crisis point -

BEHAR: That's right.

HOSTIN:  - in this country. I think democracy is participatory. I think when you have a platform, that means I have an outsized voice and when you have a platform, I think that you have a responsibility to speak up about what's going on in this country. And my view, silence is complicity. We need every single ally to speak out.

BEHAR: And every minute, every day we’re getting closer - Every day we get closer to a autocracy in this country!

HOSTIN: Correct.

BEHAR: We're about to lose it! I think people don’t seem to understand what’s going on!

ALYSSA FARAH GRIFFIN: If I may say, “A,” Billy Bob Thornton is one of my favorite actors, I’m never going to say a bad word about him. Starting with that. But “B,” a lot of this table criticized George Clooney when he wrote his Biden op-ed.

HOSTIN: I didn't.

FARAH GRIFFIN: That is a celebrity using his voice, saying what he believes.

BEHAR: Fine.

FARAH GRIFFIN: It can’t just be when they agree with your position.

BEHAR: He can say it and I can criticize it, that’s called free speech.

FARAH GRIFFIN: I think that often times we give too much weight to celebrities when they wade into things. I care way more about -- Honestly, I call it slackivism. If you get on social media you do your post and are like, I’ did my part because I have a million followers.’ No, go door to door, get involved in your community and get deeper on the issues. But I don't think we should bully people into speaking out for people who don’t feel like they’re experts.

[Crosstalk]

HAINES: It's a litmus test of the mobs. Right now people speak up and half the world wants to hate them so when looking at entertainers and people that looking to unify people, if they feel called like Kerry Washington does to be civic and loud, good for her. But if you don't feel that I'm tired of people saying, ‘no, no, now’s the time.’ What do you do, just get on Instagram and say “I hate Trump” and then -

HOSTIN (interrupting): If now is not the time, I don't know when is. I don’t know when is.

FARAH GRIFFIN: But what they say matters because we have more uninformed takes right now, we need -

[Crosstalk]

GOLDBERG: Okay. As one who can actually speak to this, you have every right to feel how you feel. Celebrities cannot go door to door to people's houses because it's hard to do. So, people can do their thing the way they can do it and be grateful that someone is doing stuff. I don't -- I'm not mad at you if this is not something you're comfortable doing, because you're doing something I don't know you're doing. I believe that people are taking care of business the way they need to.

And we’ll be right back.

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