Two weeks after NewsBusters broke the story that ABC News moderator Whoopi Goldberg, was not only referenced in the Epstein files but also seemingly, requested to borrow Jeffery Epstein’s private jet to get to a charity event for The White Feather Foundation. Never addressing why HIS jet was requested, the rest of the cast of The View came to Goldberg’s defense, claiming she didn’t fly anywhere, and trying to put the focus on President Trump instead.
Furthermore, they failed to address major points brought up in NewsBusters’ reporting: the request came five years after Epstein was convicted and the charity’s websites said Goldberg did indeed fly to the event and was the master of ceremonies.
As they were diving into yet another segment trying to link Trump to Epstein’s crimes, Goldberg made her admission of being in the files; claiming she was doing it “in the name of transparency.”
If it was truly being done in the name of transparency, they could have addressed it after NewsBusters brought it to their attention two weeks ago. Instead, they refused our multiple requests for comment and sat on it.
After two weeks of silence, The View finally addresses Whoopi Goldberg being in the Epstein files and seemingly requesting to borrow his jet.
— Nicholas Fondacaro (@NickFondacaro) February 17, 2026
JOY BEHAR: Anybody can be on this list.
WHOOPI GOLDBERG: Anybody. Well, this is my point. Because, I'm telling you when I tell you… pic.twitter.com/7vBqpKFTHD
Goldberg proceeded to read the contents of the request. Co-host Sunny Hostin immediately brushed off the request by pointing out that Jeffery Epstein rejected it:
GOLDBERG: My is in the files. Yes. And what does it say? It says, ‘Whoopi needs a plane to get to Monaco. John Lennon's charity’ -- it should say ‘Julian Lennon's charity is paying for it. They don't want to charter so they looking for private owners. Here's the info.’ And they give all the information, and they're saying, ‘do you want to offer your GII?’ Okay.
HOSTIN: It looks like they said ‘no thanks.’
One of the things ABC News didn’t draw attention to when they showed the e-mail was when it was sent, Wednesday, May 8, 2013, five years after Epstein was convicted as a pedophile.
“In other words, anybody can be on this list,” co-host Joy Behar dismissed the facts, before trying to whatabout her way back to Trump: “But Trump is on the list 38,000 times. Come on!”
Goldberg proceeded to kvetch about media outlets like NewsBusters drawing attention to the e-mail:
GOLDBERG: Well, this is my point. Because, I'm telling you when I tell you people are trying to turn me into -- I wasn't his girlfriend. I wasn't his friend.
SARA HAINES: You were too old for him.
GOLDBERG: I was not only too old but it was at a time, you know, where this is just not - you used to have to have facts before you said stuff.
BEHAR: But Trump is on the list 38,000 times. Come on!
GOLDBERG: Well, I can't speak to him but I'm speaking about me because I'm getting dragged. People actually believe that I was with him. It's like, honey, come on.
At no point did Goldberg address why Epstein was sent the e-mail requesting his jet for her use. She made no attempt to give an explanation.
Instead, they tried to argue that the idea of Goldberg flying on a plane at all was a ridiculous notion to begin with. According to them, Goldberg didn’t fly because she preferred to take a bus:
GOLDBERG: No, I didn't get on the plane because, you know what I would have to do to get on the plane -
HAINES: Fly.
GOLDBERG: - they're trying – Yeah.
HAINES: And she doesn’t fly. She’s a bus babe.
GOLDBERG: No. So, they're trying to get me to get on a plane to get to this thing for Julian Lennon.
But, as NewsBusters noted in our original report, The White Feather Foundation boasted on their website about Goldberg being at the event in question. “Whoopi Goldberg kindly flew in from the United States to host the event and performed her role as master of ceremonies to perfection,” they touted. They included pictures.
There was also the inconvenient truth that there were no buses that ran between America and Monaco on account of … the Atlantic Ocean. Additionally, taking a ship across the ocean was out of the question because the event was on May 10 and the request came in on May 8.
Previously on the show, Goldberg had made it clear on the show that Italy was her favorite place to visit when they're not producing the show. She had also flown to Italy to meet Pope Frances along side other comedians, and she flew to Italy to guest star on an Italian soap opera.
Without an ounce of reflection about what it meant for their accusations about Trump, co-host Sara Haines (who made a joke about Goldberg being “too old” for Epstein) pointed out (what NewsBusters noted) that most of the names included in Epstein’s e-mails were from “news articles, third party emails, [and] contacts.”
She also seemed to right off the jet request as just social circles brushing up against each other:
HAINES: Yeah, but the thing is they dropped like 300 names and it's like flood the zone because when you look in there, there's people like Marilyn Monroe who was dead.
GOLDBERG: Elvis.
HAINES: A lot of people. Because a lot of the reasons your name can be mentioned are news articles, third party emails, contacts, again, wealthy, famous people often cross in professional and social circles, so that's not the surprising part.
Haines’ comment actually skimmed past other NewsBusters reporting that showed Epstein was in possession of a resume of at least one person who used to work for Goldberg.
ABC News and The View did not respond to NewsBusters’ renewed request for comment.
The transcript is below. Click "expand" to read:
ABC’s The View
February 17, 2026
11:07:41 a.m. Eastern(…)
WHOOPI GOLDBERG: Now, in the name of transparency, can you put up - My is in the files. Yes. And what does it say? It says, ‘Whoopi needs a plane to get to Monaco. John Lennon's charity’ -- it should say ‘Julian Lennon's charity is paying for it. They don't want to charter so they looking for private owners. Here's the info.’ And they give all the information, and they're saying, ‘do you want to offer your GII?’ Okay.
SUNNY HOSTIN: It looks like they said ‘no thanks.’
JOY BEHAR: In other words, anybody can be on this list.
GOLDBERG: Anybody. Well, this is my point. Because, I'm telling you when I tell you people are trying to turn me into -- I wasn't his girlfriend. I wasn't his friend.
SARA HAINES: You were too old for him.
GOLDBERG: I was not only too old but it was at a time, you know, where this is just not - you used to have to have facts before you said stuff.
BEHAR: But Trump is on the list 38,000 times. Come on!
GOLDBERG: Well, I can't speak to him but I'm speaking about me because I'm getting dragged. People actually believe that I was with him. It's like, honey, come on.
Every man that I've ever been with, you've known about him because either The Enquirer wroted [sic] about it. Yeah, people wroted [sic] about this stuff. So, no. I never had -- and, no, I didn't get on the plane because, you know what I would have to do to get on the plane -
HAINES: Fly.
GOLDBERG: - they're trying – Yeah.
HAINES: And she doesn’t fly. She’s a bus babe.
GOLDBERG: No. So, they're trying to get me to get on a plane to get to this thing for Julian Lennon.
HAINES: Yeah, but the thing is they dropped like 300 names and it's like flood the zone because when you look in there, there's people like Marilyn Monroe who was dead.
GOLDBERG: Elvis.
HAINES: A lot of people. Because a lot of the reasons your name can be mentioned are news articles, third party emails, contacts, again, wealthy, famous people often cross in professional and social circles, so that's not the surprising part.
(…)
