‘The View’ Forced To Apologize After Turning Point USA Accuses Them of “Defamatory Statements”

The View issued an apology on Wednesday’s episode after the show was hit with a cease-and-desist letter from Turning Point USA, a group they had condemned in an episode earlier this week.

Sara Haines read a statement during today’s show clarifying comments made by Joy Behar and Whoopi Goldberg on Monday’s episode of The View about neo-Nazi protestors gathered outside of the Turning Point USA Student Action Summit.

Turning Point USA had accused The View of “defamatory statements” after Monday’s (July 25) episode, and issued a cease-and-desist letter to ABC calling for a retraction, FOX News reported Tuesday (July 26).

“On Monday we talked about the fact that there were openly neo-Nazi demonstrators outside the Florida Student Action Summit of the Turning Point USA group,” Haines said on today’s show. “We want to make clear that these demonstrators were gathered outside the event and that they were not invited or endorsed by Turning Point USA.”

She continued, “A Turning Point USA spokesman said the group ‘100 percent condemns those ideologies’ and said Turning Point USA security tried to remove the neo-Nazis from the area but could not because they were on public property. Also, Turning Point USA wanted us to clarify that this was a Turning Point USA Summit, and not a Republican Party event. So, we apologize for anything we said that may have been unclear on these points.”

After Haines read the statement, a Turning Point USA spokesperson told FOX News the group wanted an apology from Goldberg: “Whoopi (Goldberg) is the one who said it. She should be the one to offer the apology,” they said.

The group was referring to a moment in Monday’s episode when Goldberg responded to a legal note from Haines, who read aloud, “The conservative group Turning Point USA has condemned the group of neo-Nazis and said they have nothing to do with the organization.”

Goldberg replied, “But you let them in. You let them in and you knew what they were, so you were complicit.” She later clarified her comment, explaining that the neo-Nazis were “outside protestors” and that her “point was metaphorical” because they “were not in the building” where the summit was being held.

Her comments led Turning Point USA to file their letter, which read in part, “The false statements of fact intentionally made during The View‘s July 25th segment were unquestionably harmful to TPUSA’s reputation and brought the organization and its student affiliates into disrepute with the public, potential donors, and current and future business partners, posing a significant financial loss to the organization,” per FOX News.

The View airs weekdays at 11/10c on ABC.