Really? ‘View’ Hosts Shame Gillibrand to Support Cuomo, Shun Bipartisanship

May 27th, 2021 3:22 PM

Even the most liberal of Democrats aren’t leftist enough for some of The View hosts. Senator Kirsten Gillibrand [D-NY] was guest on the show Thursday, where she was shamed by hosts Sunny Hostin and Sara Haines for not being partisan enough, despite ranking as the third most liberal Senator in Congress.

After Gillibrand pushed for “bipartisan” gun control with a universal background checks and an “assault rifles ban” with the help of Sunny Hostin, the host admitted a little while later she saw no hope for bipartisanship in any area. She goaded Gillibrand to reject it, asking if it is a “mistake” for President Biden to reach across the aisle with Republicans who don’t support the far-left policies and economic packages the Democrats have been proposing:

Well, bipartisanship, of course, is a commendable goal but we haven't seen much give from Republicans on a lot of things, not a single GOP lawmaker voted for Biden’s--President Biden's COVID relief package and the upcoming Senate vote on a commission to investigate the insurrection isn't really expected to get the ten Republican votes needed to pass. Mitch McConnell actually said recently 100% of his focus is on blocking President Biden. In the face of all of that and knowing Democrats likely won't be in the majority forever, is this emphasis on bipartisanship a mistake? I mean, should there be more executive action?

In turn, Gillibrand touted how Democrats have been using their majority status to get around Republicans anyway on things like COVID relief:

So, I think the Biden administration is taking executive action appropriately in many places and one of the reasons why we passed the first COVID relief package through reconciliation with Democrat votes was because it was so necessary. We're still in an urgent economic and health care crisis across our country and so the moment we're in demands robust response and support the next COVID package being done through reconciliation with just democratic votes because the urgency is so great and the need is so great. So there are times when bipartisanship is absolutely appropriate and can work but there are times when you have to just move forward…

 

 

Co-host Sara Haines also attacked Republicans with her question, doubting whether New York Democrats should’ve called for Governor Andrew Cuomo to resign over his sexual harassment scandal, when there’s less on the right calling for Matt Gaetz to resign:

Yes, senator, we've asked you on the show before about being out front and calling for Senator Al Franken to resign back in 2017 after allegations of sexual misconduct. More recently you joined other prominent Democrats in calling for Governor Cuomo to resign in the face of his own scandals but there are people like Matt Gaetz who’s also facing some pretty serious allegations but with very few within his party calling on him to step down. What do you make of the inconsistencies here and are these purity tests only hurting one side? 

Which is weird, since both Haines and Joy Behar reluctantly agreed that Cuomo should resign when they talked about the allegations back in February.

Haines didn’t mention that no prominent Democrat called for Cuomo to resign after his office lied and covered up nursing home deaths in his state. When he was on the show back in October, they let him deny it as a "conspiracy."

But earlier in the show, the hosts proudly displayed their hatred for conservatives, again while talking about the mass shooting in San Jose, California. Joy Behar and Sunny Hostin cited dubious statistics to claim that assault weapons bans work, and mass shootings go down when they are in effect, but Republicans are beholden to their gun lobbies and keep repealing them. Whoopi Goldberg also ranted that conservative pro-lifers only care about the unborn and not victims of gun crime.

“I wish people felt that they cared a lot more about the victims because, you know, I always hear people say, you know, I'm speaking for the unborn. Well, I'm speaking for the people who have been shot to death,” she scolded.

Hot pockets and Pampers sponsored The View, contact them at the Conservatives Fight Back page here. 

Read transcript portions below:

The View

5/27/2021

SUNNY HOSTIN:  Well, bipartisanship, of course, is a commendable goal but we haven't seen much give from Republicans on a lot of things, not a single GOP lawmaker voted for Biden’s--President Biden's COVID relief package and the upcoming senate vote on a commission to investigate the insurrection isn't really expected to get the ten Republican votes needed to pass. Mitch McConnell actually said recently 100% of his focus is on blocking President Biden. In the face of all of that and knowing Democrats likely won't be in the majority forever, is this emphasis on bipartisanship a mistake? I mean, should there be more executive action? 

KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND:  So, I think the Biden administration is taking executive action appropriately in many places and one of the reasons why we passed the first COVID relief package through reconciliation with Democrat votes was because it was so necessary. We're still in an urgent economic and health care crisis across our country and so the moment we're in demands robust response and support the next COVID package being done through reconciliation with just democratic votes because the urgency is so great and the need is so great. So there are times when bipartisanship is absolutely appropriate and can work but there are times when you have to just move forward because you've promised the American people to help them and there's no greater urgency than responding to the COVID crisis with health care money, with money for food stamps and children who don't have enough food to responding with money for small businesses and infrastructure and this is something I know everyone on this show cares about, infrastructure is the roads and the bridges and the high speed rail and rural broadband and the new I.T. systems but it's also the soft infrastructure that allows people to go to work like getting schools open, making sure we have affordable day care, making sure we have a national paid leave program. So these are essential parts of recovery and that's why I think perhaps this next COVID relief build back better bill should have both human infrastructure and that traditional infrastructure so together we can get everyone back to work and get the economy moving again. 

MEGHAN MCCAIN: One place where I have been outspoken about the need for bipartisanship is on federal paid family leave which I know you've been advocating for. President Biden folded with his massive plan to have $4 trillion infrastructure spending bills which goes beyond roads and bridges including human infrastructure like family leave and free college. I worry that calling everything infrastructure can be confusing for people and the astronomical price tag is going to make this more partisan than it should be. Do you think Democrats could possibly be overplaying their hand here and what do you think we can do as Republicans to try to explain this is about the family and about women and we as conservatives should care about family and women for paid family leave? 

SARA HAINES: Yes, senator, we've asked you on the show before about being out front and calling for Senator Al Franken to resign back in 2017 after allegations of sexual misconduct. More recently you joined other prominent Democrats in calling for Governor Cuomo to resign in the face of his own scandals but there are people like Matt Gaetz who’s also facing some pretty serious allegations but with very few within his party calling on him to step down. What do you make of the inconsistencies here and are these purity tests only hurting one side? 

KIRSTEN GILLIBRAND: So I wouldn't call sexual harassment a purity test. I think it is important from my values that when you have individuals, male or female, come forward with serious allegations and you have them corroborated and you have multiple allegations that are similar, over time we are asked as leaders our opinions on these issues and whether we believe 

the people that are coming forward, whether we believe that that behavior is appropriate or inappropriate for an elected leader and it's just part of my values. I think sexual harassment in the workplace is problematic and I've been working to change the rules and laws here in the Senate. I've been working to change the rules and laws in the military. And so I do take allegations of sexual harassment seriously as well as allegations of sexual assault and so I do my best to think through these issues, to search my conscience and then when asked my judgment about whether I believe these allegations and whether those allegations are consistent with the role that person is playing, I give my opinion. And that's all I can do and I think that's what we are asked to do.