After Meghan McCain, former co-host of ABC’s “The View,” discussed the hostile environment of the show that she experienced before she ultimately left and Fox News meteorologist Janice Dean sympathized with her, actor Billy Baldwin mocked Dean, tweeting, “Now do Fox News.” That prompted Dean to punch back twice as hard at Baldwin as she fired, “Awww are you still angry about your buddy @andrewcuomo having to leave? Poor thing.”
Now do Fox News… https://t.co/dC9VMzgxwS
— Billy Baldwin (@BillyBaldwin) October 19, 2021
Awww are you still angry about your buddy @andrewcuomo having to leave? Poor thing. https://t.co/ECvc1LjGeL
— Janice Dean (@JaniceDean) October 19, 2021
In May 2021, Baldwin tweeted, “I have known the entire Cuomo family since the 1980s. I have tremendous respect & admiration for every single one of them. Don’t you think, after 40 years as a New York public servant, he deserves and has earned the right to an investigation before everybody rushes to judgment?”
I have known the entire Cuomo family since the 1980s.
I have tremendous respect & admiration for every single one of them.Don’t you think, after 40 years as a New York public servant, he deserves and has earned the right to an investigation before everybody rushes to judgment?
— Billy Baldwin (@BillyBaldwin) March 13, 2021
Dean sympathized with McCain after McCain’s interview with Ramin Setoodeh of Variety, writing, “I saw @meghan McCain go through this in real time. It made me sick and angry to see the torture she went through on a daily basis. There’s no question @TheView was a toxic work environment that made it impossible for Meghan to thrive.”
“They should balance the show with other opinions,” Dean continued. “And treat each other with respect. Until then, the token ‘conservative’ woman will be a punching bag until she leaves or gets fired. I used to love @theView. Now I can’t watch one single minute of it.”
“And one more thing. I am so proud of @Meghan McCain. She has an important voice in this crazy time we’re living in. A kind friend, wonderful daughter, wife, sister and mom. She has been there for me in some dark moments and I’m lucky to have her in my life,” Dean concluded.
And one more thing. I am so proud of @MeghanMcCain. She has an important voice in this crazy time we’re living in. A kind friend, wonderful daughter, wife, sister and mom. She has been there for me is some dark moments and I’m lucky to have her in my life. ♥️
— Janice Dean (@JaniceDean) October 19, 2021
Variety reported that on her second day back after maternity leave, having given birth to her daughter Liberty in September 2020, McCain was suffering from postpartum anxiety, frightened that someone would kidnap her or hurt her daughter, and was “terrified about being on TV again.” Variety continued, “During a political debate that day, McCain made a joke about how Joy Behar, the show’s resident liberal, must have missed her when she was gone. Behar scowled at her. ‘I did not miss you,’ Behar said. ‘Zero!’”
In her upcoming audio memoir, “Bad Republican,” McCain states of Behar’s actions after McCain came back after maternity leave, “Joy seemed to smell that vulnerability like a shark smells blood in the water, and she took after it.”
McCain left the show in August of 2021.
She told Variety:
People were not comfortable around me. I was there less than a month when the first article came out about me, about what a disappointment I was and my nickname backstage was “Elsa the ice princess” [from “Frozen”]. My dad was dying of glioblastoma. I got permission from the network to take every other Friday off to go home to Arizona and help him get treatment. If I was cold, with this giant show with a group of strangers, I was trying to do well.
There were never bad stories leaked about anyone else, and there was certainly bad behavior that could have leaked. Do you think all those women are peaches and cream in the morning? Are you f***ing kidding me? But it was always like, “Megan is …” I thought it was unfair.