Former President Donald Trump found an unlikely defender in Whoopi Goldberg when she said if he “wants to be on Twitter” and people “want to listen to him, fine.”
During “The View” on Wednesday, the co-hosts were discussing the possibility of Trump returning to the social media platform after Elon Musk said he would reverse Twitter’s permanent ban, calling it a “mistake” and “morally wrong.”
Co-host Joy Behar said she thinks when it comes to free speech, the “First and Second Amendment should have some limits,” and when it comes to Trump “this would be one of them, inciting an insurrection,” referencing the riot at the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021.
Sunny Hostin, another co-host, said Musk’s claim was “wrong” when he said the former president’s ban didn’t “end his voice,” and cited details that “discussion about Trump plunged to a five-year low.”
WILL ELON MUSK REVERSE TRUMP TWITTER BAN? After the Tesla CEO said he would reverse Twitter’s permanent ban of former Pres. Trump if his offer to acquire the company goes through, #TheView panel questions if Trump should stay banned. https://t.co/Fpfua0vpiq pic.twitter.com/J3TsJb8CqL
— The View (@TheView) May 11, 2022
However, Goldberg weighed in, she first explained why she “stays off Twitter” and then said if Trump wanted to be on there, let him.
“Listen, Donald Trump wants to be on Twitter, if people want to listen to him, fine,” the co-host explained. “Fine, because that’s what it is. That’s where we have said to people you have the right to say whatever you want to in this place. We’ve let it go.”
“And when it suited us it was fine,” she added. “And when it doesn’t suit us, it’s a problem,” she added. “Twitter is an issue. … It’s an issue for little kids. It’s an issue for young women. It’s an issue. But every time we get worked up ‘well burn them’ and then we don’t.”
“I hate to say this,” Goldberg continued after Hostin credited Twitter for getting Trump elected in 2016. “This is what people said they wanted. Well we’ll see. It seems like there’s a little nostalgia for him, so let’s see what happens. I don’t think people are going to buy it. Because if they were going to buy it they would’ve joined his Twitter thing [Trump’s Truth Social alternative platform]. … If people were that interested they would’ve gone on to that. So, I’m not sure that the fact that he’s no longer got the title, I think the fact that he no longer has the title makes him human like everybody else.”