"The View" co-host Joy Behar ripped NBC host Kristen Welker and the media on Tuesday over an interview on "Meet the Press" with Rep. Elise Stefanik, R-N.Y., saying not being tough enough on Republicans could mean the end of the country.
"What I wish is that the media would take these people on," Behar said. "I’m watching ‘Meet the Press’ with that annoying Stefanik woman, calling these insurrectionists on January 6 hostages. Okay, they were there voluntarily, they’re not hostages."
Behar said Welker did not push back.
"I mean come on, if you don't confront these people on their lies in the media, we will lose this," Behar said.
Co-host Sunny Hostin said Welker "dropped the ball" on the interview.
Stefanik, during the interview on "Meet the Press," said she had real concerns about the treatment of "January 6 hostages."
Her language was similar to that of former President Trump, who said over the weekend that the Jan. 6 "hostages" should be released.
"They ought to release the J6 hostages. They’ve suffered," Trump said. "I call them hostages. Some people call them prisoners. I call them hostages. Release the J6 hostages, Joe. Release them Joe. You can do it real easy, Joe."
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Welker also asked Stefanik about certifying the election results in 2024, "no matter what they show."
"Well, I voted not to certify the state of Pennsylvania because, as we saw in Pennsylvania and other states across the country, that there was unconstitutional acts circumventing the state legislature and unilaterally changing election law," Stefanik said.
The hosts of "The View" have been critical of Welker in the past, specifically after she sat down with Trump for an interview.
"I wish she had not done a Trump interview as her first one. Because I think nobody ever wins with a Trump interview. Nobody looks good because it’s just, like – it’s like interviewing an insane person. Actually, it is interviewing an insane person. Take off the mic," co-host Ana Navarro said.
Co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin disagreed and said Welker was one of the "best interviewers out there."
The hosts took issue with several outlets that have sat down with the former president or hosted him for a town hall.
Hostin accused CNN host Kaitlan Collins of being unprepared for the CNN town hall they hosted with Trump last year.
"I don’t think that she was prepared. I don’t think he should have been given a platform. I was wondering when he was going to be fact-checked in real time," Hostin claimed.
