The View‘s lineup was finally full on Tuesday’s (February 25) episode after absences from both Whoopi Goldberg and Alyssa Farah Griffin due to illness. And they all had a lot to say about Donald Trump‘s latest headline-making meeting — this time, with French President Emmanuel Macron.
First, the group reviewed footage of the Oval Office sit-down, in which Macron corrected Trump about the contributions European countries are making to help Ukraine’s defense, but also used complimentary language and body language around Trump. Then, Joy Behar made it a proper roast right away.
“The amount of flattery that this man needs is a psychological issue. I mean, Roman emperors didn’t need this much ring-kissing. Everyone has to love him. The neediness. The man is almost 80 years old, and he’s got the neediness of a toddler,” Behar, who is 82 herself, said in response to Trump, 78.
She went on to promote a clip of Maine Governor Janet Mills’ reaction to Trump threatening her state’s funding — she said simply, “See you in court” — during a governors meeting.
Griffin, who previously worked for Trump’s first administration, criticized Trump for his foreign policy moves since re-taking office, particularly in refusing to join a U.N. resolution recognizing the three-year anniversary of and condemning Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. “I supported, believed in, and think it was effective when he encouraged European allies to contribute more to defense spending. Burden sharing matters… but what he is doing now is essentially saying America first means America alone.”
Sara Haines took note of certain European leaders’ calls for strengthening their own defenses instead of relying on America and added, “I think the other thing that maybe Donald Trump needs to realize is — and I’m going to oversimplify this — the bad guy, they’re there for themselves. Allies and friends are not; they actually stick with you in the tough times.” She also compared Trump’s comments on wanting to purchase Greenland, annex Canada as the 51st state, and occupy Gaza as signs that he has a similar viewpoint as Vladimir Putin and Russia. “I think he thinks like Putin… He thinks land-grabbing is something we’re allowed to do.”
Sunny Hostin added, “I think this president, unfortunately, perhaps either doesn’t understand geopolitics and doesn’t understand the importance of having allies … or perhaps there is a reason why he is so enthralled with Russia.”
Behar then borrowed a quote from history to sum up her fears about Trump, saying, “When we were kids, Nikita Khrushchev, who was the head of Russia at the time, the USSR, he said, ‘We will destroy you from within.’ And here we are, like 50 years later, and that’s what they’re doing.”
The View, weekdays, 11 a.m. ET, ABC
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