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TOPLINE
Meghan McCain, the co-host of the View and Senator John McCain’s daughter, faced criticism Wednesday for expressing skepticism about National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease director Dr. Anthony Fauci, resulting in criticism from her cohosts and users in social media.
Meghan McCain during an event on February 5, 2018 in New York City.
Cindy Ord/Getty Images for SiriusXM
KEY FACTS
“I do not have faith and trust in Dr. Anthony Fauci the way that I did,” said McCain on a Wednesday episode of the View, explaining: “I’m the only conservative on this show, and I leave this place and all I do is consume conservative media, so i’m just trying to explain what conservatives are seeing.”
McCain went on to praise the work of Fox News host Tucker Carlson: “As much as you want to trash Fox News, Tucker Carlson has the highest approval ratings and numbers in Fox News history, partly because he’s saying, in a much more eloquent way, what I am saying right now.”
This comes after McCain alleged “hypocrisy” by Fauci, Dr. Deborah Birx and the liberal media for turning a blind eye to Black Lives Matter protests and Pride marchers who violated social distance guidelines.
“Nobody said that,” responded McCain’s co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar to McCain’s allegations.
Goldberg continued, “This is not about politics—people who are conservative, people who are Republican, people who are Democrat, they’re all getting hit the same way. People are dying…everybody has to get on board to stop the spread of this thing. We said it to the marchers, we said it to everybody. Nobody is making a distinction.”
McCain’s monologue has made #TheView trend globally on Twitter with users sharply critical of her actions:
Critical Quote
“I do think there was an impression made from some people that [violating social distance] was okay because the protesting and the existential crisis of police brutality, which we can have another conversation at another time, was more important than the virus and the outbreak,” said McCain on the Wednesday show.
Key Background
While Republicans like staunchly conservative Mitch McConell (R-KY) are saying ““Put on a mask—it’s not complicated,” local republican leaders are not convinced to follow guidelines professed by Fauci or the Centers for Disease Control. “[Fauci] doesn’t know what he’s talking about,” said Texas’ Republican Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick in a Tuesday night Fox News interview. “We haven’t skipped over anything. The only thing I’m skipping over is listening to him.”
Tangent
Political conflict between cohosts is a seeming staple of the View, which experienced its largest audience in two years during the coronavirus pandemic. McCain, show’s conservative cohost, is the daughter of Senator John McCain, joined the View in 2017, after working as a pundit for ABC News, Fox News and MSNBC.
Further Reading
‘The View’ Explodes Over Trump Rally vs. Black Lives Matter Protesters (Daily Beast)
My Beef With Ann Coulter (Daily Beast)
Fauci Tells Congress U.S. Could Start Seeing 100,000 New Cases A Day (Forbes)
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