The Real Reason Sara Haines Apologized On Behalf Of The View

"The View" waded into controversial waters on its July 25 episode when it tackled the recent conference held by Turning Point USA. During the episode, co-host Joy Behar chided the conservative activism group for the neo-Nazi protesters lining the exteriors of its summit. "Neo-Nazis were out there in the front of the conference with anti-Semitic slurs and you know, the Nazi swastika and a picture of a so-called Jewish person with exaggerated features," Behar said, likening the images to what "Goebbels did during the Third Reich" (via The New York Post).

The first sign of trouble was when "The View" panelists issued an on-air disclaimer that Turning Point USA denounced the neo-Nazi presence that showed up, per The Hill. Nonetheless, co-host Whoopi Goldberg chimed in after the disclaimer that Turning Point USA still "let them in, and you knew what they were." This prompted another disclaimer from ABC, with the panelists clarifying that the neo-Nazis were "outside" the event. Goldberg rebutted that her "point was metaphorical."

So why did Sara Haines, another "View" co-host, apologize on behalf of the panel two days later? 

Turning Point USA has heard enough out of "The View." The conservative activism group hit ABC with a cease-and-desist letter on July 26, as first published by Fox News, asking the company to "retract the defamatory statements" made about its recent summit by "The View" panelists. Giving ABC a deadline of July 27 to retract and apologize before they take legal action, the group's letter caused "#SueTheView" to trend on social media overnight, per Fox News. Not surprisingly, "The View" apologized on its July 27 episode, via a joint statement read on-air by co-host Sara Haines. 

"On Monday we talked about the fact that there were openly neo-Nazi demonstrators outside the Florida student action summit of the Turning Point USA group. We want to make clear that these demonstrators were gathered outside the event and that they were not invited or endorsed by Turning Point USA," Haines said. "A Turning Point USA spokesman said the group, quote, '100 percent condemns those ideologies,' and said Turning Point USA security tried to remove the neo-Nazis from the area but could not because they were on public property." Haines also clarified that the Turning Point USA summit was "not a Republican Party event." 

With co-host Whoopi Goldberg not contributing to the on-air apology, Turning Point USA was not satisfied with the response. As their official Twitter account tweeted, "Whoopi remained silent and has not retracted her comments that TPUSA 'metaphorically' embraced 'Nazis.'"