Alyssa Farah Griffin, a co-host on "The View," has criticized her fellow panelists for their initial defense of Maine Democratic Senate candidate Graham Platner. Platner withdrew from the race earlier this month following sexual assault allegations from a former partner.
During a discussion on the show about the importance of character in political candidates, Griffin pointed to Platner's candidacy, which had previously garnered support from figures like New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani and Sen. Elizabeth Warren.
"I don’t know that I’m convinced either party puts up the best people. I’m just going to be honest," Griffin stated. "Like I love you guys, but a lot of you guys defended a guy with the Nazi tattoo who is credibly accused of a number of things."
Following Griffin's remarks, other co-hosts clarified their positions. Joy Behar stated, "I did not [defend him]." Sunny Hostin admitted to supporting Platner multiple times in recent months but conceded that she was unaware of the full background, including the context of his tattoo, until he faced multiple allegations of sexual abuse. Hostin stated that Platner should have exited the race after these allegations surfaced.
Whoopi Goldberg commented on the tattoo, saying, "I didn’t see that tattoo as a Nazi thing. No one ever told me that that tattoo — what that was." She added, "It’s not up to us. It’s up to the people who are voting in that state."
Co-host Sara Haines suggested that for many voters, character and integrity are prioritized over policy. "People are looking for people with character, integrity," Haines said. "And policy, to me, is almost third, and I mean that deeply. That’s the policies almost everyone agrees on." Haines also noted that primary elections often select more extreme candidates due to the nature of the system, but these candidates may not win in general elections.