“The View” host Meghan McCain sputtered in frustration after the rest of her co-hosts — and the audience — turned against her over NFL player protests against racism and police brutality.
Team owners voted Wednesday to ban on-field protests, after President Donald Trump personally attacked players and threatened to change tax laws that benefit the NFL, and co-host Sunny Hostin said critics don’t understand the purpose of the demonstrations.
“This protest is not about the national anthem, this protest is not about the flag,” Hostin said.
“Think about the Milwaukee Bucks player, Sterling Brown, who was tased for doing nothing by the police,” she added. “This country terrorizes African-American men at a bigger rate than white men. If I want to kneel because I don’t think America is as great as she can be, I don’t think America has lived up to the promise of the flag, that means I am just as American as you are when you stand in homage to your parents’ service.”
Co-host Joy Behar pointed out that Trump had rarely seemed angrier than when he called out former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, whose career ended over his silent protest — and McCain justified the president’s rage.
“It’s a very emotional issue,” McCain said. “I can’t analyze his anger in different places, he has been angry and irrational in a lot of different places.”
McCain explained that her views on the protests differed from her tablemates, but she clung to poll numbers showing most Americans agreed with her.
“I disagree with everyone on this table,” she said. “I would never be okay with somebody not saluting the flag. By the way, 72 percent of Americans, according to Reuters, said that they thought Kaepernick’s behavior was unpatriotic.”
Hostin cut in to say the vast majority of black Americans called Kaepernick a patriot, and McCain immediately lashed out.
“Can I just finish what I’m saying,” McCain said, as the audience erupted into applause to support Hostin.
“I’m still talking!” McCain shouted at the studio audience. “I’m still talking, I’m still speaking.”
Behar reminded the panelists that everyone got a turn to speak, but at that point host Whoopi Goldberg ushered the show into a commercial break.
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