On Wednesday’s The View, the panel discussed President Obama’s speech yesterday where he slammed those in the GOP “yapping” about him not using the phrase “radical Islam” when talking about terrorist attacks. Co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Raven-Symone defended the President’s position, while Goldberg claimed, falsely, that Obama “used to say” these words but they were never “good enough” for his critics.
After playing the clip from President Obama’s speech Tuesday blasting his critics and defending his choice to not use the word “Islam,” co-host Sara Haines pushed back:
I’m one of those people that feels a little reassured that they're addressing what it is...But in regard to the greater problem with ISIS. I think there's an area in between. One side says we're painting a whole religion. We’re vilifying a whole religion. The other side in a way is using their own political talking point by not addressing what it is, in this particular war against ISIS, it is born from Islam extremism. Not the whole religion.
Goldberg then insisted, “He used to say extremism. They said, that wasn't good enough.” Joy Behar agreed, parroting, “That’s not good enough.”
ABC's Sara Haines surprisingly disagreed, arguing the President wouldn’t be saying this if it was terrorism coming from another religion.
HAINES: They always avoided the Islamic part. But if it were Christianity or Judaism….
But Goldberg pushed back again:
GOLDBERG: But nobody is saying that. When the President says radical Islamic, people say that’s not strong enough.
Here, co-host Paula Faris tried to explain again to Goldberg that the issue is, he’s never said it to begin with. But Goldberg was adamant.
FARIS: I think the problem is people have said, he's not saying it. So maybe if he did say it--GOLDBERG: But he has said it! No, he has said it. He has said it in the past.
Unfortunately this simply is not true. Even liberal “fact-checker” site Politifact found that President Obama has never said “radical Islam” or “Islamic extremism” when speaking about terror, while in office. In fact, he has purposefully and openly avoided doing so. He’s not the only one. The media have followed his lead and avoid using the word “Islam” when describing Islamic terrorist attacks as a rule.
