Meghan McCain Says She’s Thought Michael Jackson Was “A Pervert” Since Martin Bashir’s 2003 Doc

Now that HBO’s controversial documentary Leaving Neverland has concluded, the women of The View are sounding off on the damning film. On Tuesday morning, The View devoted its opening segment to a discussion of the two-part doc, which tells the story of two men, Wade Robson and James Safechuck, who claim to have been sexually abused by Michael Jackson as children (Jackson’s family and estate deny the allegations). The co-hosts seemed shocked by the “gross” allegations presented in the  doc, and they were united in their support of Robson and Safechuck. But no one spoke as strongly as Meghan McCain, who said that she’s thought Jackson was “a pervert” ever since she watched Martin Bashir’s 2003 documentary Living with Michael Jackson.

Behar introduced the discussion by saying that parents “should get the kids out” because the first topic of the day is “really kind of gross.” Said Behar, “I couldn’t bring myself to watch Leaving Neverland. It makes me sick.” The View then played a clip of Robson and Safechuck detailing the alleged abuse, which they say began when they were seven and ten years old, respectively. “Michael Jackson was the biggest superstar in the world by far,” said Behar. “If these allegations are true, is that how he was able to get away with it?”

“It’s so upsetting,” said guest co-host Ana Navarro. “We keep hearing about these stories over and over and over again. I think we have to say thank you to all the victims who have started to speak.” Sunny Hostin added that she’s prosecuted child sex cases in the past, and noted that because Robson and Safechuck defended Jackson in the past — both testified in his 1993 child molestation trial, and Robson, then an adult, testified in his 2005 trial — “people will be reluctant to believe them” now. “We’ll see what happens to Michael Jackson’s legacy. Will people cancel Michael Jackson?” she asked.

Conservative co-host Abby Huntsman then chimed in, saying that she once “loved Michael Jackson,” but Leaving Neverland changed that. “If you turned on Michael Jackson’s music, I’d walk out,” she said, visibly emotional. “I don’t think there will ever be a point in my life when I hear his hits and don’t think of this.” Huntsman, who is currently pregnant with twins, added that she’s “watched so many documentaries in the past two years,” but this was by far “the hardest one for [her] to watch.” Addressing Jackson directly, she added, “You stole their innocence. If this is true, you took their innocence. You took their life. You took someone’s baby’s life.”

Unlike her fellow co-hosts, Meghan McCain said that she didn’t grow up as a Michael Jackson fan — she grew up thinking he was creepy. “I remember watching the Martin Bashir doc … and saying, ‘He is a pervert,'” she said, referencing the 2003 film Living with Michael Jackson (for a more complete breakdown, check out Kayla Cobb’s piece on the controversial doc). She went on to say that those “shaming” Robson and Safechuck can’t handle the “inconvenient realities of our icons” before concluding, “I believe Wade Robson and James Safechuck.”

Where to stream Leaving Neverland

Where to stream The View