The View Hosts React to Jan. 6 Hearing: 'It's Not Shocking' Trump Said Pence 'Deserves' to Be Hanged

After a night of major revelations during the first January 6 committee hearing, the women of The View spent Friday morning reflecting on the proceedings and offering their thoughts about what comes next.

The co-hosts opened by praising Vice Chair Liz Cheney, one of just two Republicans on the nine-person House select committee. "I'm not a Liz Cheney fan, but I found her so compelling last night. I found her to really be — she has one mission, and that is Donald Trump never be anywhere near the halls of power ever, ever again," said Sunny Hostin. "Her politics and my politics are so very different. But she did the right thing."

"It's crazy to me how close we came to losing our democracy," she continued. "This committee, I think, is doing the right thing ... if nothing comes of this, I would be shocked. I think they are saving our democracy."

Though she insisted she is "a Liz Cheney fan," Ana Navarro agreed with Hostin's overall point. "What Liz Cheney showed yesterday was the courage that is lacking in so many other Republicans," said the guest co-host. "That moment yesterday when she said, 'Trump is going to be gone one day, but your dishonor is going to remain with you' — it's absolutely going to remain with them."

Navarro went on to criticize her fellow Republicans for "trying to whitewash" the insurrection at the Capitol. "How dare you call yourself the party of law and order and the party that supports police when you are supporting Donald Trump and this conspiracy and this coup, [with] over 140 injured police that day!" she said. "How dare you!"

Sara Haines then pivoted to one of the biggest bombshells from Thursday night's hearing: Trump's alleged remark that former Vice President Mike Pence "deserves" to be hanged for certifying the results of the 2020 election on January 6. "That jarred me. It's not shocking, but it did," said Haines.

KEY MOMENTS, TAKEAWAYS FROM JAN. 6 HEARING: The Jan. 6 House select committee made its primetime debut Thursday night and began laying out its case against former Pres. Trump, placing him at the center of what lawmakers called an "attempted coup" — #TheView panel reacts. pic.twitter.com/X76Ii03CJU

— The View (@TheView) June 10, 2022

Though the hearing aired across various broadcast and cable news networks — even far-right network Newsmax aired it live — Fox News opted out, instead airing its regular primetime lineup of Tucker Carlson, Sean Hannity, and Laura Ingraham. Joy Behar skewered the network for refusing to air the historic hearing, saying the trio "dusted off their greatest hits" by calling the hearings a "witch hunt" and "political revenge."

"Listen to this part: there were no commercial breaks last night on either show," Behar continued. "So what does that tell you? Rupert Murdoch is so desperate to keep his viewers away from the hearing, along with those two, that he is willing to lose millions of dollars. People should pay attention to that."

Claire Spellberg Lustig is the Senior Editor at Primetimer and a scholar of The View. Follow her on Twitter at @c_spellberg.