Sara Haines spoke lovingly about her return to The View two years after leaving her seat at the show’s Hot Topics table to helm her own daytime talk show for ABC News alongside Michael Strahan, titled Strahan & Sara . She sat alongside the series’ panelists, which include Whoopi Goldberg, Sunny Hostin, Joy Behar, and Meghan McCain, as they dove headfirst into the most timely topics of the day, but not before she gave her own view regarding her full-circle moment on the talk series.
In a Twitter post, the series shared Sara’s statement on how she felt about reclaiming her seat on The View .
“It feels like home. I’ve been a fan of this show and the opportunities I have as a woman to sit at this table and have such important conversations. I think it’s more important than ever as we head into this election and we are surviving this unprecedented pandemic that we have conversations where we investigate, we disagree, we push forward,” in a statement at the top of the Season 24 episode.
Sara further explained that she believed that speaking out on the series was even more of an honor than it was before and even more important.
WELCOME BACK, SARA! We’re thrilled to have @sarahaines back with us as a full-time co-host — she shares about returning to the panel. https://t.co/INLd4WHBBH pic.twitter.com/A8HGqgpJmL
— The View (@TheView) September 8, 2020
During the first segment of the new season, the hosts hotly debated the contents of an article written by The Atlantic . The newspaper reported that anonymous sources claimed President Donald Trump disrespected American soldiers.
While Sunny, Joy, Meghan, and Whoopi defended the publication and its reporting, Sara appeared to be on the fence regarding The Atlantic story. She expressed some skepticism about the article, which used anonymous sources to flesh out its contents. She later remarked that she didn’t believe there was enough evidence to have a definitive opinion on the matter, reported Mediaite .
Sara is reportedly the only one who filmed at The View’s New York City studio, per Page Six . The outlet reported that as filming continues, more of the crew will return to the set and abide by New York State’s coronavirus guidelines for social distancing. The remaining co-hosts will film at their respective homes.
In the comments section of the post, many fans of The View shared their joy at Sara’s return while others were not so sure.
“Bring Ana Navarro back. I like Sara but she doesn’t offer any opinion (so she must be embarrassed to be Republican). I don’t love this format. The conversation is not natural and Whoopi’s role seems diminished to reading the questions,” wrote a second Twitter user, who hoped for a more permanent place at the table for the Friday fill-in panelist and political commentator.