Who knew that one of our most impassioned political orators would come from daytime TV? Love her or hate her, Elisabeth Hasselbeck of The View has used her daily airtime to speak at length about her support of Sen. John McCain.
Hasselbeck’s fiery rhetoric has become so prevalent, it even sparked several rumors that she might ditch Joy Behar & Co. for a job at Fox News.
She’s shot down those rumors for now, but there’s little doubt that her profile rises with each passing day. Here’s a look at the past week-plus:
Oct. 20: The View co-hosts Hasselbeck, Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar spar about Gov. Sarah Palin’s perceived snub of not appearing on the show.
Oct. 21: Hasselbeck wears a T-shirt that she designed on The View that reads “AmeriMcCain Hero.” Political implications aside, it’s just confusing.
Oct. 22: Barbara Walters asks if Hasselbeck and Behar ever see eye-to-eye on political issues. Elisabeth Hasselbeck says that’s possible since she once considered voting for Obama. Behar calls her “delusional.” Hasselbeck bristles at being called a liar, and fires back that Joy should go have “more of the Barack Obama Kool-Aid.”
Oct. 23: Celeb news sites report that Behar told Hasselbeck she is making a fool of herself, and that the two are bitterly fighting behind the scenes.
Oct. 24: Hasselbeck and Goldberg argue about the merits of diplomacy.
Oct. 25: CNN asks, “Who has influenced the presidential election more: Tina Fey or Elisabeth Hasselbeck?”
Oct. 26: View co-host Sherri Shepherd gets into the mix and nearly lays out Hasselbeck on the air. It’s the high-water mark for on-set strife.
Oct. 27: Hasselbeck travels around Florida with the McCain campaign, introducing Sarah Palin at a rally in Kissimmee, cracking that it’s nice to speak for five minutes without being interrupted. Oh, snap, Joy. Bet that one stung.
Oct. 27: At the same rally, Fox News correspondent Sean Hannity interviews Hasselbeck, who decries the media for sexist focus on Palin’s wardrobe.
Oct. 29: The Chicago Sun-Times reports that Hasselbeck and Behar are no longer speaking off-camera.
Oct. 30: Stay tuned!