Ana Navarro named official co-host of 'The View'
Ana Navarro and Alyssa Farah Griffin were named as official hosts of ABC's "The View" on Thursday.
"The View" touted Ana Navarro as a "Republican power player" Thursday as she was announced as an official co-host for the show's upcoming season, in spite of her liberal views.
On the same day, the ABC talk show announced Alyssa Farrah Griffin would fill the "conservative seat" vacated by Meghan McCain last year. Both Navarro and Farah Griffin are outspoken foes of former President Trump, although Navarro has long opposed him, while Farah Griffin worked in his administration and has since done a heel turn.
Navarro cut her teeth in Florida politics with former Gov. Jeb Bush, R., and remains a Republican Party member, but the show's highlight reel accompanying her co-host announcement concentrated on her roasts of Trump, push for comprehensive immigration reform, and liberal views on abortion and gun control. Whoopi Goldberg called her a "Republican power player" while narrating the video. A CNN commentator, Navarro is a reliable booster of Democrats and has encouraged viewers to support them.
Following the on-air announcement, Navarro tweeted that she would see viewers at the table in September for Season 26. She explained she will not be able to be with the show full-time for now with other media and family commitments. Navarro has been a rotating host on the show for years, winning over viewers with her dramatic denunciations of Republicans and seemingly rehearsed one-liners.
‘THE VIEW’ GETS TESTY: MEGHAN MCCAIN ASKS ANA NAVARRO WHY SHE CONSIDERS HERSELF A REPUBLICAN
"The View's" Ana Navarro discusses the confirmation of Judge Ketanji Jackson by the Senate on April 8, 2022. (Screenshot/ABC) (Screenshot/ABC)
Some were quick to criticize Navarro's official party affiliation, given her clear alliance with Democrats. In 2020, she gushed over the selection of Kamala Harris as Joe Biden's running mate, calling them "Uncle Joe" and "Auntie Kamala." She voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016, Florida Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum in 2018 and helped Biden court Latino voters in Florida in 2020; she is also an outspoken critic of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, R.
"Republican??" Tablet's Noam Blum wrote in response to the news on Twitter.
Conservative media watchdog NewsBusters called Navarro and Farah Griffin "faux conservatives."
Jordan Chamberlain of the Washington Free Beacon joked that if Navarro was a Republican, then Sen. Josh Hawley, R-Mo., was a Democrat.
Ana Navarro on "The View." (Screenshot/ABC/TheView)
Navarro also received some praise from actresses Eva Longoria Bastón and Holly Robinson Peete.
Longoria Bastón congratulated Navarro and said, "They're so lucky to have you. Love you hermana!"
Robinson Pete said she was "so happy" that Navarro is "FINALLY an official cohost" and added that she is an "unstoppable force of nature."
Reports of Navarro also getting a co-hosting gig in addition to Farah Griffin broke shortly before the program aired on Thursday. Fox News Digital and other outlets had reported Farah Griffin would be announced as a new co-host last month.
The show will now have six regular co-hosts, and one former ABC insider said Navarro's addition could be taken as a slight at Farah Griffin, who has been criticized as inauthentic due to working for Trump for nearly four years but now blasting him as unfit for office.
New co-hosts of The View, Alyssa Farah Griffin (left) and Ana Navarro
"I think she's got a rough road ahead of her," the insider told Fox News Digital. "I wouldn't want to be in her position right now. But, you know, you make deals with the devil for TV contracts. There's a price to pay."
Navarro, on the other hand, has more credibility with the show's generally left-leaning viewership.
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"I don't understand her appeal, but I do know the audience likes her," the insider said.
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