Staff Reports
Following the second assassination attempt on former President Donald Trump in just over two months, even the liberal bastions of daytime television have begun to shift their tunes. Sunny Hostin, a co-host on ABC’s “The View” and a frequent Trump critic, has seemingly reached her breaking point regarding the alarming support for violence against the former president and current GOP contender.
On a recent episode of “The View,” Hostin expressed her dismay at the growing tendency among certain segments of the American public to endorse violent actions against Trump. A new University of Chicago poll revealed that a disturbing 10 percent of American adults believe violent opposition to Trump is justified. Even more unsettling, that translates to roughly 26 million people who are willing to embrace brutality in their quest to prevent Trump from reclaiming the presidency. According to Hostin, among those millions, over 30,000 are gun owners, and a staggering 80 percent have access to online platforms that could aid in organizing violent actions. Such a reality prompts the obvious question: what’s next?
Sunny Hostin said the number of Americans supporting violent acts against Trump is "despicable" pic.twitter.com/12lgnYAFWi
— Daily Caller (@DailyCaller) September 16, 2024
Considering the vitriolic rhetoric spouted by Hostin and her co-hosts, one can’t help but wonder if she is merely engaging in some self-reflection. After all, the persistent diatribes from “The View” have been a significant contributory factor to the normalization of hostility towards Trump. Rather than searching for solutions, perhaps the co-hosts should take an introspective look at how their own words may be feeding this toxic environment. If Joy Behar and Whoopi Goldberg could temper their anti-Trump tirades, it could positively influence the dialogue surrounding the former president.
Adjacent to this, co-host Sara Haines pointed fingers at the overarching “hate speech” and the evolving political discourse as the roots of escalating violence. Ana Navarro, who claims to stand on Republican ground, has dedicated herself to disparaging Trump without respite, asserting that such violence has become part of American culture. It’s crucial to remind both women that the last attempt on the life of a former president occurred way back in 1981 against Ronald Reagan, and two attempts in less than two months is certainly not a standard that reflects American tradition.
Furthermore, the insights of political scientist Robert Pape shed light on this emerging threat. Pape’s analysis notes that Americans indeed show distressing levels of support for political violence, particularly against Trump. He underscores the unsettling finding that a notable faction of the population, distinguishing themselves by their willingness to resort to violence to thwart Trump’s political ambitions, is becoming increasingly active. This raises pressing questions about who is perpetuating these extremist ideologies and where these sentiments are nurtured. Mainstream figures like Joe Biden, Kamala Harris, and the media giants – CNN, MSNBC, and the like – have undoubtedly played an influential role in inciting these sentiments.
In the grand scheme of things, Hostin’s newfound condemnation of those who threaten violence against Trump reeks of opportunism. One cannot overlook the timing of her remarks, coming on the heels of two significant assassination attempts against the former president. This careful pivot appears to be a calculated attempt to distance herself from the reckless rhetoric that has permeated her show and the left-leaning media. For those who have closely followed the progressive talking points, it is hard to accept this change of heart as anything more than a shallow effort to retain some semblance of credibility in an increasingly volatile political climate.
