The View‘s season finale got particularly combative on Friday when Meghan McCain and Ana Navarro came to blows over the recent comments of Ivanka Trump.
The president’s eldest daughter gave a widely panned interview on Thursday at the Newseum’s Axios News Shaper event. She made a number of controversial and contradictory statements that had news outlets and social media buzzing, so of course it became the bread and butter of Friday’s episode of The View.
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“When Ivanka first came on the scene and we learned she was going to be a senior assistant to the president, part of the administration, I thought this was going to be a great thing,” Navarro admitted. “I thought she was going to soften up her father, have some influence on her father, but the act of, ‘I am vehemently against this, I am vehemently against that,’ but at the same time I stay in this complicit administration, and I cash in and laugh all the way to the bank, getting patents in China and selling stuff there, the act is getting a little old.”
Navarro was referring to Ivanka’s claim that she was opposed to family separation at the border, and other statements which clashed with her actions and those of her father. Ivanka also said that, whatever the president tweets, she personally does not believe the press is the “enemy of the people.
“Girl, if you are vehemently against family separation and it’s offensive to you, if you believe the press is not the enemy of the people, quit,” Navarro continued. “You can’t quit being his daughter, but you can quit being in the administration. You can’t have it both ways.”
“I’m not exactly sure what she’s doing,” McCain said, chiming in that in a “political family” it is important to “stick to the narrative. The family sticks together and you put out one narrative.”
While they seemed to agree on that much, McCain rushed quickly into some opposing viewpoints. She disputed the use of the term “enemy of the people,” but suggested that the news media had a lot to answer for.
“I will say, when you’re talking about liberal media bias, it’s something that’s real and really exists. Pew Research said in 2012, Obama had 39 percent positive coverage compared to Romney’s 3 percent. So, I would rather have the conversation about why Republicans don’t have the same fair and balanced coverage Democrats do, than automatically jumping to terminology like enemy.”
Guest host Michael Avenatti jumped in, saying that “Republicans have a station that’s dedicated to propaganda,” to which McCain shot back “CNN,” as if to suggest that CNN serves the same purpose for Democrats that Fox News serves for Republicans.
“CNN tries to be very balanced. CNN has commentators on like me and every time I’m on, I’m on against somebody defending Trump,” Navarro said. “I mean, MSNBC where you worked once—”
“A very, very long time ago,” McCain cut in. “Don’t come for me!”
“You just came for CNN knowing I’m a CNNer,” Navarro retorted.
Navarro drew applause from the audience as McCain, looking frustrated, tried to steady the ship.
“It wasn’t directed at you. This is our last show, I’ve really enjoyed this season. I am not interested in redoing arguments you and I have had Ana, we vastly look at this differently,” McCain said. “I do think I represent a lot of Republicans in the country who think CNN— by the way, Jake Tapper is one of the best journalists in the country — but CNN does have a bias among Trump supporters and Republicans.”
The fight flared up once more as McCain asked: “Why are you re-litigating my career right now?”
“Because you are attacking CNN, which is my career,” Navarro said.
After that, Joy Behar got things more or less back to normal.
That marked the end of season 21 of The View. ABC has not announced a premiere date for season 22.
