Joy Behar, co-host of The View, criticized East Palestine, Ohio’s voting record following the disastrous train derailment earlier this month.
Behar and fellow co-hosts Sunny Hostin, Sara Haines, and Alyssa Farah Griffin discussed the train derailment and subsequent chemical release.
Hostin praised Buttigieg’s absence, claiming the Department of Transportation Secretary was waiting for an initial investigation before visiting the community. She suggested the disaster was caused by the Trump administration’s push to roll back regulations.
“Republican’s talking about small government and less regulations — well, this is what happens when you allow companies to regulate themselves,” Hostin said.
“When you allow companies to not be good corporate citizens and grade themselves,” she continued, “they give themselves an ‘A’ every single time.”
Hostin also criticizing the Obama and Clinton administrations, though noted a “real shift” in regards to the Trump administration’s push for deregulation.
Hostin appears to claim the derailment happened under the Trump administration. "This is serious stuff. And this did happen under the Trump administration," she said.
Adding: "We saw a real shift when it came to deregulation and the Trump administration." pic.twitter.com/ZBrPqofiOk— Nicholas Fondacaro (@NickFondacaro) February 23, 2023
Griffin, who previously served as White House Director of Strategic Communications in the Trump administration, threw support behind the former President’s move appearing in East Palestine on Wednesday in an effort to bring attention to the community.
Behar countered Griffin by criticizing the former President, who provided Trump-branded water bottles and McDonald’s for residents in the community.
Trump jokingly said he “knew the menu” better than McDonald’s employees during his appearance at the fast food restaurant.
“It seems to me that the Republicans are obsessed with this notion of the free market, and they don’t like a lot of regulations,” Behar continued, transitioning back to the train derailment.
Behar suggested there were very few plane crashes because the industry is “highly regulated.”
“We have to pay for regulations and safety standards,” she continued. “Otherwise, where are we? We’re gonna go up in flames.”
Griffin extended criticism towards Buttigieg and the Biden administration, noting a three-week absence in the Transportation Secretary’s presence in the community.
Behar countered Griffin by claiming Trump’s Environmental Protection Agency regulation cutbacks directly caused the train derailment.
“That’s who you voted for,” she said of Ohio residents.
On Thursday, Buttigieg visited East Palestine following Trump’s Wednesday appearance, though appeared to dodge questions from reporters inquiring about why the Transportation Secretary was missing for three weeks.
“I’m not here for politics,” Buttigieg responded to one Turning Point USA (TPUSA) reporter. “I’m here to make sure the community can get what they need.”
Buttigieg’s press secretary, Kerry Arndt, similarly dodged questions from reporters, saying she didn’t want to be recorded.
“I’m happy to have a conversation with you. I do not want to be on camera,” Arndt said, referring to the use of cameras as “aggressive.”
“The people have been quite tight knit about when we can ask questions,” TPUSA reporter Savanah Hernandez said, noting reporters were there to represent the American people.
“We wish we could be able to ask these questions, but for some reason … we’re [not allowed to].”
