It looks like the ladies of The View have fallen in love with openly gay South Bend Mayor Pete Buttigieg, who has formed an exploratory committee to run for President as a Democrat in 2020.
On Tuesday, co-host Joy Behar opened a segment by touting a Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll highlighting that “a majority of Americans have...no problem with a gay candidate.” Behar then asked a follow-up question: “are they ready for a gay President?” Co-host Ana Navarro didn’t exactly answer Behar’s question but took the opportunity to go on a rant against President Trump: “I’m ready for a qualified President...[applause]...I’m ready for a President who tells the truth, I am ready for a President who does not divide the country. I am ready for a President who can speak in coherent sentences that include a verb and a noun.”
After Behar took a veiled swipe at President Trump by describing Buttigieg as a veteran with “no bone spurs,” co-host Sunny Hostin described Buttigieg as “impressive” and talked about how she loved that he “spoke about his faith” on the show, referring to an appearance he made on the show last month where he trashed the religious right and Vice President Pence.
Even right-leaning co-host Abby Huntsman appeared to have gotten caught up in Buttigieg mania, romanticizing him as “the complete opposite of what we see right now in the White House when it comes to the way he speaks, just his calmness (and) his character.” Huntsman claimed that she told Buttigieg “I love the way that you speak and I love how you can connect to people regardless of what their political affiliation is.” Huntsman also praised Buttigieg for his efforts in “bringing this country together,” apparently forgetting that he once called his fellow hoosier Vice President Pence a “social extremist, the likes of which our country has not known in national politics.”
Right-leaning co-host Meghan McCain, who made her disdain for President Trump and her admiration for Buttigieg clear throughout the segment, quickly changed the topic of the conversation from Buttigieg to socialism. She went back to the Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll Behar touted at the beginning of the show and pointed out that only 25 percent of Americans are comfortable with a socialist becoming President. This greatly upset Behar, who declared that “when they realize what that means, they’ll…come around.”
It appeared as if the rest of the panel liked socialism just as much as Buttigieg, if not more so. Hostin stressed “there’s a different between socialist and democratic socialist.” After she declared that she disagreed with the idea that “socialism is a bad thing in the way they’re describing it,” Behar recycled the tired talking point that “the way they describe it makes it sound like we’re all going to be in Venezuela. That’s not what it is.”
A transcript of the relevant portion of Tuesday’s edition of The View is below. Click “expand” to read more.
The View
04/02/19
11:14 AM
JOY BEHAR: Welcome back. So, so Mayor Pete Buttigieg is quickly becoming the candidate to watch. His popularity is skyrocketing and he’s already raised $7 million for his campaign, which will keep him moving. A Wall Street Journal/NBC poll found that a majority of Americans have no…this is what they say, have no problem with a gay candidate. That’s great. But are they ready for a gay President? That’s the question. Well, we know this audience is.
(APPLAUSE)
BEHAR: Well, we are. But how about America?
ANA NAVARRO: I’m, I’m ready for a qualified President.
MEGHAN MCCAIN: Yeah.
SUNNY HOSTIN: Me too.
(CHEERS AND APPLAUSE)
NAVARRO: I’m ready for a President who tells the truth. I am ready for a President who does not divide the country. I am ready for a President who can speak in coherent sentences that include a verb and a noun. But…
BEHAR: You know, can I just say that we already might have had a gay President? President Buchanan was a confirmed bachelor. I’m just saying. Let me give you these facts just so you decide. It doesn’t matter if he was or wasn’t but there is speculation because he was the only U.S. President to remain a bachelor for his entire life. That’s number one. That’s nothing. Before becoming President, Buchanan openly lived with a guy named William Rufus King for 16 years. King was Franklin Pierce’s Vice President and he lived with this guy for 16 years. They lived together on and off all those years until King died from tuberculosis. This is my favorite part though. Their peers knew about their relationship and Andrew Jackson himself referred to him as Miss Nancy. Okay? So it is not completely unchartered territory…
HOSTIN: Yeah.
BEHAR: …for Pete Buttigieg…
HOSTIN: Yeah.
BEHAR: …who happens to be highly qualified, a veteran. No bone spurs in him.
HOSTIN: No, no, no. I found him so impressive. I mean, he, we’ve had him on the show twice. He’s the mayor of South Bend, Indiana. I went to law school at Notre Dame and I know South Bend very well. And, you know, what I loved about him is he spoke about his faith on the show and I asked him a question about his faith and he doesn’t shy away from that. And I just thought that…and he speaks so many different languages. He served. And he’s just so…he’s young. He’s only 37, I believe. But he’s so willing to take on the service. And we need someone like that.
ABBY HUNTSMAN: What I find so interesting about him, people keep saying what is going to beat Trump? Do they have to get down and dirty in the mud with him? When he came on the show, none of us knew him, by the way. The country didn’t really know him and so it’s incredible to see how quickly he’s been able to rise being the complete opposite of what we see right now in the White House…
HOSTIN: Yes.
HUNTSMAN: …when it comes to the way he speaks, just his calmness…
HOSTIN: Yes.
HUNTSMAN: …his character, he doesn’t even like women…
HOSTIN: Yes.
HUNTSMAN: …but he’s literally the exact opposite of what we are seeing.
HOSTIN: Yes.
HUNTSMAN: And I think that’s telling you something about where a lot of the people…
BEHAR: Yes.
HUNTSMAN: …in this country…
BEHAR: Hopefully…
HUNTSMAN: …what they’re wanting, maybe bringing the country together. Who knows where he’ll go but I, I find him fascinating and I told him when he was on the show after, I said, do not change who you are because politics can change you. And I love the way that you speak. And I love how you can connect to people regardless of what their political affiliation is.
HOSTIN: He hasn’t announced yet but I’m assuming he will.
NAVARRO: Well, look I’m so happy he’s surging because it took me so long to learn to pronounce Buttigieg.
BEHAR: Yeah.
HOSTIN: Buttigieg.
BEHAR: You and everybody else.
HOSTIN: Buttigieg.
BEHAR: I think we’re getting it now. Buttigieg.
HOSTIN: Yeah. Buttigieg.
BEHAR: It’s not that hard.
HOSTIN: It’s very easy. Buttigieg.
MCCAIN: Yeah, I mean, it’s interesting. This NBC/Wall Street Journal poll talked about characteristics that voters find enthusiastic or that they are comfortable with. Top of the list, an African-American, second, a white man, third, a woman and fourth, gay and lesbian. So, it’s not nearly as, as taboo as I think maybe old, old, old adages may have thought. What I also found fascinating; at the very, very bottom, only 25 percent of Americans are comfortable with a socialist becoming President.
HUNTSMAN: How many?
MCCAIN: 25 percent. That’s it.
BEHAR: When they realize what that means, they’ll get…come around.
MCCAIN: People are smart. Okay?
BEHAR: So am I.
MCCAIN: So I’m just saying do you know what’s helping Pete Buttigieg? So am I. So am I.
HOSTIN: But there’s a difference between socialist and democratic socialist.
MCCAIN: You disagree that I’m smart?
BEHAR: No, I disagree with the idea…
MCCAIN: All right.
BEHAR: …that socialism is a bad thing in the way they’re describing it.
HOSTIN: Democratic socialists.
BEHAR: Yeah, the way they describe it makes it sound like we’re all going to be in Venezuela. That’s not what it is.
(CROSSTALK)
MCCAIN: I miss Whoopi when she’s not here. I mean, it’s just, I’m just trying to explain to you the other side and why he’s a great candidate and why democratic socialists could be leading you towards the path towards Trump getting re-elected but instead, I’m told that I don’t understand what democratic socialism is. I assure you, Joy, I do.
