'The View' Facing Another Headache Amid Whoopi Goldberg Scandal

While The View just finished dealing with its Whoopi Goldberg scandal, another issue has been holding attention behind the scenes. The show is reportedly having trouble finding Meghan McCain's replacement, per Politico. McCain left the program back in August and the show has featured a rotating cast of Republican guest hosts ever since. 

The current co-hosts on the panel include Sunny Hostin, Sara Haines, Joy Behar, and Goldberg, the latter of whom was recently suspended for two weeks following her comments on the Holocaust. The co-hosts have reportedly shared with higher-ups that they aren't thrilled that the panel continues to rotate various conservative personalities on the show. They want a decision to be made in 2022 regarding McCain's permanent replacement. Hostin even told New York Magazine in November, "Right now, we still do need a really conservative voice. And we need someone that's not duplicative of anyone else on the panel." Although, finding that individual has become a tall order for ABC. 

The network has been facing difficulties in casting the right conservative-leaning voice to join the panel. The Republican member of the panel must be someone who has not denied the results of the 2020 election, has no ties to the Jan. 6 riots at the Capitol, and hasn't embraced fringe conspiracy theories. Still, the person that they choose does have to have some credibility with mainstream Republicans, especially as many still support former President Donald Trump. One of the rotating guest hosts said of the search, "The problem is that they bring people on under the mantle that this woman is a conservative, when they're 'Never Trump,' so they don't represent the country."

What makes the search even harder is that the individual can't be seen as someone who is too friendly with the other members on the panel. ABC has done research on The View's viewership and many do want to see the women quarrel about their differing viewpoints. A former View staffer explained, "They are really looking for a unicorn. They want someone who is going to fight – but not too hard, because they don't want it to be ugly and bickering." The View has already tried out a variety of conservative figures for the position such as Condoleezza Rice, Gretchen Carlson, S.E. Cupp, Alyssa Farah, and Morgan Ortagus.