Politics may not always be a welcome topic of conversation on Thanksgiving, but it certainly was on Wednesday’s episode of The View.
The Hot Topics table was alight with a discussion about how multiple Republicans are reportedly considering leaving their congressional posts early over frustrations with the White House and House Speaker Mike Johnson.
“I think that the reason they feel like potted plants is because they are potted plants, because they have ceded their authority,” Ana Navarro said. “They have forgotten — Republicans in Congress — that they are an independent, co-equal branch of government. And so look, don’t complain about being treated like garbage when you behave like garbage. Don’t complain about being trampled on when you behave like an old rug.”
The Hot Topics table on ‘The View’.
ABC
She noted that Republicans have “issued no oversight over Trump’s abuses of power” during his current administration.
“No pushback. No guardrails,” Navarro said. “And so, yeah, why wouldn’t Trump ignore them and treat them like garbage if he knows that they are feckless, fickle congresspeople who will rubber stamp any harebrained abuse of power idea that he has?”
Sunny Hostin agreed with Navarro’s assessment.
“This president has overreached so much that they have been left with no ability to oversee the executive branch or oversee anything,” she said. “They weren’t able to pull off the Affordable Care Act subsidies. They haven’t really been able to do anything because Trump does’t allow them to do anything and the Supreme Court has said it’s okay.”
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Navarro pointed out, however, that the members of Congress “have the ability, they just don’t have the willingness to confront Trump” over it.
“They haven’t done it,” Hostin said. “They can’t. They’re all just sort of useless.”
Alyssa Farah Griffin noted that she believes that there’ll be “some administration resignations” as well as the Democrats get closer to taking back the House of Representatives because they’ll have oversight authority.
Navarro and Sunny Hostin on ‘The View’.
ABC
She also emphasized that it was important that Congress remember its power.
“When DOGE came in, it had cuts across the board and ended congressional appropriations — they gave up their power,” she said. “And even we were talking yesterday’s show about war-making authorizations — that is a distinct congressional power and they’ve given that to the White House. So I don’t really feel bad for them like, ‘I guess we name post offices and censure people?’ What else are you gonna do?”
Griffin added that people shouldn’t be running for office to stay in power forever. “Run for two years and vote how you actually believe and let the chips fall where they may. If Trump comes after you, if a different president does, that’s okay.”
Sara Haines added, “You’d get better politicians.”
The View airs weekdays on ABC.