Alyssa Farah Griffin: I'm excited and honored to join 'The View'
Alyssa Farah Griffin officially joins the ABC talk show as its co-host in the conservative seat.
Making it official Thursday, "The View" named former Trump White House official Alyssa Farah Griffin the new permanent co-host in the conservative chair of the long-running ABC News talk show.
Farah Griffin said she was "honored" to receive the job and excited to mix it up with her new co-hosts.
"I am so proud to have found my voice. I was a president's spokesperson. I was a vice president's spokesperson. I was way too many Republican mens’ of Congress spokesperson, but now it is my voice, and I’m here to just join this table, hopefully bring a different perspective. It’s going to get sporty sometimes, but I adore you women," she said.
Here's what to know about Farah Griffin, who will take over after "The View" went a year without a full-time replacement for conservative firebrand Meghan McCain. The show also made a surprising announcement on Thursday, saying Ana Navarro would also be a co-host, but would not appear daily.
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Farah Griffin is one of a legion of Republican critics of Donald Trump with lofty media perches. She has repeatedly said on "The View" that he cannot become president again and has spoken out sharply against his 2020 stolen election claims and conduct around the Jan. 6 Capitol riot.
It wasn't always that way. Farah Griffin held a number of high-level positions in the Trump administration, including Vice President Mike Pence's press secretary, Pentagon press secretary and White House communications director. In the latter position in 2020, she was reportedly key to shaping messaging around Trump's response to the coronavirus pandemic. She resigned in December 2020, expressing pride in her time in the administration in her resignation letter.
Then-White House Director of Strategic Communications Alyssa Farah speaks to reporters following a television interview, outside the White House in Washington, U.S. October 21, 2020. (REUTERS/Al Drago)
Earlier this year, though, she said, ""As somebody who regrettably worked for Donald Trump, I do not want to see that man ever be president again." She has said some family members, including her father, skipped her wedding over her stance against Trump.
Farah Griffin joined CNN as a commentator in 2021.
Before the White House, she worked under eventual Trump Chief of Staff Mark Meadows in Congress and also worked for the Freedom Caucus. She cut her teeth at the far-right site WorldNetDaily, which was founded by her father.
She describes herself as a national security conservative and pro-life
"I’m a conservative who believes in limited federal government and a robust national defense," she said in a statement to National Review last month. "I do, however, think that most people who have served in the highest levels of government, who hold the highest level security clearances, as I do, often become less dogmatic in their views as they learn more and are exposed to more."
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She has called on Republicans to not be pro-life simply with regard to abortion, challenging the party to support poor mothers and families after babies are born.
She's by far the youngest host at the table and continues trend of younger women being tapped for conservative chair
Farah Griffin, 33, will be the youngest host on the show, with Sara Haines, 44, the only other host under 50. Liberal hosts Joy Behar (79), Whoopi Goldberg (66) and Sunny Hostin (53) round out the table.
Alyssa Farah Griffin is the new permanent co-host of "The View." (Photo by Lou Rocco/ABC via Getty Images) ALYSSA FARAH GRIFFIN
"The View" has tended to hire younger women for the conservative chair; McCain turned 33 shortly after officially joining the program in 2017. Bila was 37 when she joined in 2016, and ex-George W. Bush aide Nicolle Wallace was 42 when she joined in 2014. Elisabeth Hasselbeck was just 26 when she joined the program in 2003.
Farah Griffin seems to have threaded the needle with "The View" staff and viewers as being viewed as a conservative with legitimate Republican bona fides that set her apart from other hosts, while not embracing 2020 stolen election narratives considered beyond the pale.
She's much less combative on the air than Meghan McCain
McCain exited the show last year after four stormy seasons on the program, where she made headlines with her clashes with Whoopi Goldberg, Joy Behar and others.
Although not a Trump supporter, McCain would often go to bat for conservative views in ways that previous hosts hadn't; Wallace, for instance, generated little buzz during her year in the chair, and eventually evolved into a left-wing MSNBC host who is a rabid Democratic Party backer.
Farah Griffin's last year of frequent guest-hosting spots has seen her bicker at times with the other hosts, but not nearly to the degree that McCain did. She has found herself on the defensive at times over her time in the Trump administration, for which she has repeatedly expressed profound regret.
"We are telling the truth now, we are telling it authentically, we are acknowledging what we did wrong, and I am grateful to those women and I stand with them, I stand with [former aide] Cassidy Hutchinson. You know what, we all make mistakes, but I am glad these women are using their voice," Farah Griffin said last month.
Perhaps her most memorable moment was her spat with former Trump White House counselor Kellyanne Conway earlier this year, where Conway told her she'd "changed."
It was a long process to get here
"The View" trotted in numerous guest hosts over the past year, the show's 25th season on the air. They included former Trump press secretary Stephanie Grisham, the Lincoln Project's Tara Setmayer, former NBC Sports reporter Michele Tafoya, former Utah congresswoman Mia Love and Daily Blast Live's Lindsey Granger.
Farah Griffin emerged as the front-runner as she made more guest appearances than others and provided buzz with her top roles in the Trump White House and vocal criticism of her former boss.
Her new co-hosts may be skeptical of her
Behar made recent comments about "recovering addicts" who worked for Trump who shouldn't expect redemption on "The View," which one former ABC insider said was likely a direct shot at Farah Griffin.
Alyssa Farah, White House Director of Strategic Communications, speaks to members of the media outside the West Wing of the White House in Washington, U.S. October 4, 2020. (REUTERS/Erin Scott)
During a discussion of the Jan. 6 committee hearings and the Capitol riot, Behar expressed disgust for what she called "recovering addicts" who had turned against Trump.
"These people who are now all, like, recovering addicts — recovering addicts in the Trump world that come on, even on this show. They come on this show, they go on other shows, and they're suddenly turning on Trump," she said, listing off Trump actions like ripping John McCain and allegedly disparaging veterans. "Where was Mike Pence when Trump called [Ukraine's president] to interfere in the election… It's just disgraceful. We're onto all of them. Don't try and fool us."
"If I were one of [those] two people auditioning and Joy had said that, I would take it as a shot," the insider told Fox News Digital. "Joy is very intentional. She's very smart, and she's very intentional with her hits. When she attacks someone, it's very calculated and intentional."
The insider added Behar was "very authentic" and the audience values that trait in her and other outspoken hosts.
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She has sharp critics on both sides of the aisle
Farah Griffin has her share of detractors, with some conservatives suspicious of her about-face on Trump, while some liberals are unforgiving of her ever serving in an administration they loathed.
Conservative outlet National Review's article about how she's evolved on Trump and other issues last month outlined how she had shifted on everything from Jan. 6 to Hunter Biden coverage to Trump himself – she once claimed to have had no "illusions" about Trump when she went to work for him, but a video from her time in the administration showed her saying she was "smiling so wide because I was just excited to see [Trump.]"
Farah Griffin fired back at the article, stipulating she hadn't read it but denying her "fundamental views had changed."
Conservative media watchdog NewsBusters was disgusted with the reported selection of her as the new co-host, calling her a "faux conservative."
"It’s obvious that Farah Griffin’s views and allegiances change based on who is lining her pockets," Nicholas Fondacaro wrote.
On the other side of the aisle, MSNBC's left-wing host Tiffany Cross blasted the selection last weekend, calling her an "opportunist."
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"Now, ABC has not made a formal announcement, but let’s please not forget that this tawdry turncoat Trump loyalist quickly morphed into an opportunist after voluntarily taking jobs with the Trump administration. Signing on to work for his regime knowing full well what Trump represented. And she rode his wave of open xenophobia and racism all the way to network television," Cross said.