When Elisabeth Hasselbeck noted such comments are on par with Wright’s past ravings, Behar immediately countered "no one liked him on this panel." While Joy may not have been Wright’s biggest cheerleader, she has attempted to justify Reverend Wright’s extreme remarks even labeling Wright’s "God Damn America" sermon "righteous," spinning an anti-Italian slur as a "compliment" and refused to "sit in judgement" over Wright’s sermons "because I’m not black."
Whoopi Goldberg, who also defended Wright’s rants in the past, added "we never talked about his anti-Semitism" but "the ravings of him being against white people...and America." In Whoopi’s world anti-white racism and anti-Americanism is apparently more acceptable than anti-Semitism.
The transcript follows.
WHOOPI GOLDBERG: Hate is hate, and it doesn’t matter who it’s coming from. Reverend Wright is back in the news. He told the Virginia Daily Press the reason President Obama hasn’t contacted him lately is because, quote, "them Jews aren’t going to let me talk to him."
BARBARA WALTERS: Yeah, and then he said when he’s no longer in office, maybe then Obama will- in other words, he’s, he’s just doing this now because of the Jews.
JOY BEHAR: You know, he’s talking about Rahm Emanuel and Axelrod, who happen to be Jewish guys. If he wasn’t an anti-Semite, he would have said "his henchmen" or "his bodyguards." But because he says "Jew" that, that makes him an anti-Semite. In case you’re listening Reverend Wright, we’re on to you.
[applause]
ELISABETH HASSELBECK: Now, now. I still go back, I mean- this guy hasn’t- it’s not like he shifted what he’s been preaching for the past 20 something years.
BEHAR: No one liked him on this panel.
GOLDBERG: No, no. We never defended- we defended- what we tried to make folks understand was why this man, who’s a reverend and a man whom everyone should have been very respectful of had some of the views he had. We never talked about his anti-Semitism. We never talked about his anti- anything but the ravings of him being against white people is what we were talking about.
BEHAR: And America.
GOLDBERG: And America. And the- the idea that this- that this man could reduce the president of the United States to that is shocking to me. This is a guy who says he’s his friend. This is a guy who’s-
HASSELBECK: It’s not shocking to me. It’s not shocking I think it is what he’s been doing for a long time.
GOLDBERG: No I know it’s not shocking to you, but that’s okay. But here’s what is also- yes go ahead because I have to do something. No go ahead.
SHERRI SHEPHERD: I was going to say Reverend Wright reminds me- everybody has got that old uncle that says crazy stuff and you’ve got to want to put him in the back-
BEHAR: He’s evil.
SHEPHERD: I know you’re not going to get it.
HASSELBECK: You can choose your pastor. You can choose your pastor. You choose your pastor.
GOLDBERG: Oh, good God!
