To quote New York Yankee great Yogi Berra, “It’s déjà vu all over again” at ABC’s “The View.”
That’s because the return of former co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck has led to some fiery discussions. On Wednesday, the hot topic was immigration.
Hasselbeck, the lone Republican on the panel, went to bat for President Donald Trump’s border policies and deportation efforts. She claimed the administration is taking on an issue that has been ignored for too long.
“We need a strong border, especially now with our current global situation. And I believe that you may say you don’t want border control and you’re against ICE, but I actually don’t believe you in your daily lives,” Hasselbeck said. “How many people in the audience here had to go through security to get here? Raise your hand, just be honest, otherwise you go to jail, I guess, for legal trespassing, right?
“This is an authorized audience. They had to through security, to get through the border, to just get right here, to hear us talk. We need strong borders more than ever right now. We are being infiltrated.”
She pointed to large drops in border crossings and daily encounters by Border Patrol as definitive proof Trump’s policies are working.
However, these words were hard for the other panelists to swallow.
“We’re not on the border when Renee Good and Alex Pretti were murdered, and death is not a mistake. That was a murder. That was murder,” co-host Sunny Hostin said.
“As were those killed by illegal immigrants,” Hasselbeck responded.
“Let’s not be dismissive about the fact that this—” Hostin continued, but Hasselbeck interrupted her.
“I’m not dismissive. I just said all of their lives matter,” she stated.
Hostin then attacked Noem, calling her “unqualified.” She also accused her of showing “zero empathy” for Good and Pretti.
Co-host Joy Behar turned the subject to numbers, citing a report on the small number of illegal immigrants taken into custody who have criminal convictions.
“I just want to give you this one statistic from the Cato Institute. Only 5% of people detained by ICE have violent convictions, 73% have no convictions. That’s really what the problem is,” Behar said
According to Cato Institute analysis, 5% of migrants booked into ICE custody have a violent criminal conviction. The report states that most have vice, immigration, or traffic violations. Immigration officials have argued many migrants booked into custody do not have convictions, but do have outstanding charges. The report is based on information ending on Oct. 1, 2025.
Hasselbeck had statistics of her own, stating “450,000 children and families were trafficked under [former President] Joe Biden, letting them under. We have now reunited 146,000 children to their families.”
Hasselbeck also said she feels sympathy for Good, Pretti, and victims killed by illegal immigrants.
“I understand. I also believe that we have a God of borders,” she said. “We have a nation of borders for a good reason. I hate the fact that people are dying in this. My heart actually bleeds for this.”
