On Tuesday, the co-hosts of “The View,” led by Whoopi Goldberg, strongly criticized recent remarks made by former President Barack Obama and businessman Mark Cuban, both of whom called out the Democratic Party for what they described as ineffective messaging and lack of action, according to Fox News.
Goldberg responded directly to Obama’s advice for Democrats to “toughen up” and stop “navel-gazing,” given during a political fundraiser where he urged party members not to be passive just because they were disappointed. She insisted that Democratic voters have been active and passionate, particularly highlighting their visibility during large protests and advocacy for social issues like Social Security and illegal immigration. Goldberg argued the real issue is not with the voters, but with elected officials and their ability to communicate and lead effectively.
“So, let me remind everybody who is out in the front lines marching when we had the giant marches that went on, it was the people, the people went out,” Goldberg said. “They were not navel-gazing, it was older people saying, ‘why are you touching my Social Security?’ It was not people whining. It was about people saying, ‘why are you taking these rights from my child when my child was born here?’ This has not been about Democrats laying back. This has been about y’all, because their messaging was always the same.”
Co-host Sara Haines echoed Goldberg’s distinction, clarifying that the frustration should be directed at elected Democrats rather than the voters, who remain “very impassioned.” Haines called out the party’s leadership for failing to provide solutions, especially on issues like immigration, and criticized the lack of comprehensive plans offered by Democratic officials.
Mark Cuban had also criticized the party’s approach while on “Pod Save America” arguing that the Democrats’ message overly fixates on attacking President Trump rather than focusing on positive proposals for the American people. He described the approach as, “It’s just ‘Trump sucks’. That’s not the way to win!” Co-host Ana Navarro rebutted by saying “Yeah, OK, so some of us say Donald Trump sucks. He does suck, and it feels good to say it!”
Obama had warned Democrats against waiting for a “quick fix” or a political savior. “Stop looking for the quick fix,” Obama said. “Stop looking for the messiah. You have great candidates running races right now. Support those candidates.”
The co-hosts’ pushback against Obama’s appeal to Democrats suggests that the party’s internal divisions may be deepening as its dysfunction appears to be getting worse.