‘The View’ Cohosts Clash Over Israel-Iran Conflict & Trump’s Involvement

Things got off to a very rocky start on Wednesday’s (June 18) edition of The View as the cohosts’ discussion of the deadly conflict erupting between Israel and Iran devolved into a full-on shouting match.

The conversation began with a discussion of Tucker Carlson‘s headline-making interview with Ted Cruz, in which he challenged the Texas senator’s knowledge of Iran, despite his support of Israel’s attacks on the Middle Eastern nation.

Whoopi Goldberg asked Alyssa Farah Griffin to speak first because of her status as the resident Republican of the panel and her contacts in Donald Trump‘s orbit, especially in national security thanks to her previous experience working in the Pentagon.

“So, listen, I have to say I’m not going to cheer Tucker Carlson because [for] the first time in 10 years, he made one good point. This is one of the most malignant forces in our political discourse,” Griffin said. “He might as well be the spokesperson for Moscow. He is a stooge for Vladimir Putin… But cool you once made a good point to Ted Cruz.”

She then slightly defended Cruz’s position (which aligns with Donald Trump’s, supporting Israel’s aggression against Iran), saying, “Here’s where things stand. 79% of Americans agree Iran should never have a nuclear weapon. But when you go to a question around regime change, around American boots on the ground, it is significantly, significantly less popular. People do not want to get back to forever wars. They don’t want U.S. troops in the Middle East. And to the best of my knowledge and everything we know publicly, Ted Cruz did misspeak, the U.S. has a defensive posture in the Middle East right now. We have not, based on what is public, taken any strikes ourselves on the Iranians, it’s been Israeli [forces].

“So here’s where things stand. Donald Trump is going to win the popularity contest here because he did run, and since the first time he was in office, on Iran not having a nuclear weapon. The way he would lose massive support if it became boots-on-the-ground regime change, the U.S. having a long-standing presence in the Middle East, people do not want that. We’re sick of it. But there are many ways to achieve what the vast majority of Americans want, to have, a safer Middle East in a safer world that does not require us going to World War III.”

“I thought he ran on no more wars,” Joy Behar retorted.

“He did, but there’s a big difference between … So I was in the Pentagon during the Solemani strike, and most smart people on cable news and military experts said this is going to lead to World War III. In fact, it led to deterrence in the Middle East for about two years. Because the reality is, the Iranians cannot compete with the U.S. military. They are a rogue regime. They like to sow terrorist discord in the region. They back Hamas. They back Hezbollah. Their own people, by the way, want the Ayatollah gone, but that is on the Iranians to free themselves of the Ayatollah, not on Americans.”

Sunny Hostin then jumped in and said, “Well, that’s what I think is very problematic. Because what people aren’t talking about is that Israel preemptively struck Iran, and so I think the conversation would be very different if another country preemptively sent missiles to this country, right? No one would be saying, ‘Sure!'”

Behar disagreed, saying, “The Israelis believe that Iran would like to completely destroy Israel, that Iran is an actual existential threat to Israel.”

After some crosstalk, Hostin then replied with, “That is fine, but you have to do that legally, and under international law.”

“I’m not sure Iran does things legally,” Behar quickly replied.

“Under international law, Israel should not be preemptively striking another country. And President Trump just said yesterday he demanded Iran’s unconditional surrender and threatened to kill its supreme leader. He wrote, ‘We know exactly where the so-called supreme leader is hiding. He’s an easy target, but is safe there. We are not going to take him out, kill at least not for now.’ That is also illegal under this country’s executive order. These executive orders have been ongoing since Gerald Ford. The current executive order says you cannot threaten, nor can you kill the leader of another country,” Hostin replied. “We really need to have a bird’s eye view of what’s going on. If that’s okay for Israel to do, if that’s okay for our president to do, is that okay for another country to do?”

When Behar then challenged, “What if Canada was saying it was going to build a nuclear bomb and they threatened to kill us all? What would we do?”

“You have to do it diplomatically, Joy,” Hostin said.

“Really?” Behar said incredulously. “What’s so diplomatic about having a nuclear bomb and threatening another country?”

“First of all, they don’t necessarily have a nuclear bomb,” Hostin responded and noted that one of Barack Obama‘s signature foreign policy wins was the Iran Deal, which Trump canceled. “Trump actually rolled out of that bill, and that’s why I think Israel took this opportunity. Because if there had been an agreement between the U.S. and Iran, a nuclear agreement, Israel could not have bombed.”

Then, it was Sara Haines‘ turn to talk, and she defended Israel’s actions as well, saying, “Israel has had a target on its back its entire existence [by] every terrorist organization known to man. Iran is the world’s leading state sponsor of terrorism.”

After some more crosstalk with Hostin, Haines made a second point on the matter, saying, “There was an Iranian woman who was killed for mis-wearing her hijab. More than a vast majority of that country is also not happy with the people in power.” As Hostin once again challenged, Haines raised her voice to say, “I’m saying I’m not going to defend the legalness of a terrorist nation.”

“You might want to think about this, because the reason there is diplomacy is so people are not bombing each other willy nilly,” Goldberg then interrupted.

The conversation once again shifted into largely unintelligible crosstalk until Griffin claimed the floor again, saying, “By the way, Iran has launched ballistic missile attacks on U.S. forces in Iraq, just three years ago, preemptively. They have attacked Israel preemptively.”

“Should we do what they do?” Hostin asked, perhaps rhetorically, and Griffin quikcly answered, saying, “No! As I said, the people of Iran have self- determination, and if they want the Ayatollah gone, they should do it internally.”

Hostin then addressed viewers when she said, “And by the way, I want to say this so that I don’t get a bunch of hate mail Criticism of the Israeli government is not anti-semitic, okay? I am criticizing Benjamin Netanyahu. I am criticizing Israel. I am not an anti-Semite, but under international criminal law. What is happening now is not legal.”

In response Goldberg challenged, “That’s the thing… That’s why you have a UN, that’s why you have all of these folks who come together and yeah, it’s slow…”

Griffin then interrupted again and said, “But let’s just remember, too, the Iranians literally throw gay people off of buildings. They don’t adhere a basic human rights.”

“Let’s not do that because if we start with that, we have been known in this country to tie gay folks to cars,” Goldberg argued.

Griffin snapped back and said the comparisons between America and Iran are not fair, but Goldberg pressed her point saying, “That’s not what you mean to say. It is the same.”

“No, in the year 2025, it’s nothing like if I step foot wearing this outfit…” Griffin argued.

The conversation then became a full-on shouting volley between Goldberg and Griffin, as Goldberg argued that the experience of being a Black person in America, even today, can feel similarly oppressive. “Let me tell you about being in this country. This is the greatest country in the world. I know that. I know that. And we all know that. But every day we are worried. Do we have to be worried about our kids? Are our kids going to get shot because they’re running through somebody’s neighborhood?”

The View, weekdays, 11 a.m. ET, ABC