November 5, 2014

Hot Topics:

  • Midterm Election Results: Nicolle began the show today discussing the midterm elections and she said, “The republicans won and they won big.” She said not only did the Republican Party win but “there was an actual anti-democrat, anti-Obama feeling about these election results.” (so says the republican, but whatever) She said there were some exciting firsts and the Senate has become younger and more female. The republicans are sending their first ever black woman from Utah to Congress. She said the wins yesterday don’t necessarily represent a win for conservatives but a win for republicans. The republicans carefully selected the candidates that would represent them to ensure “no more tea party shit-stirrers” would be selected to be the voice of the party. And on a good note, pot is now legal in Oregon and DC! Nicolle said, “The mood of the country is so sour that these gains will not be enduring unless something changes.” Rosie P said we had a “do nothing congress” before and she worries that we now have an even “do less” congress. She admitted she voted democrat but really wants the country to come together. Nicolle said, “Presidents sometimes have an easier time governing when their party loses control of Congress because it becomes just the White House negotiating with one other side.” Whoopi felt like the democrats deserved to lose yesterday because they didn’t stick by their president. She thinks they should have stood by Obama and what they originally stood for. Nicolle said if the people had turned out to vote in the midterms that turned out in 2008, the vote may have gone very differently. She said the Democratic Party may now be wondering if they had called upon the president to campaign with them, if the election results would have been different. Rosie O remembered going with her mom to her elementary school to vote when she was a child. Whoopi remembered doing that too and what a big deal is was. Rosie P was in the care of child welfare services for much of her childhood so doesn’t have any memory of voting with a parent. If you want to learn more about Rosie P’s harrowing childhood story, I encourage you to read her book Handbook for an Unpredictable Life: How I Survived Sister Renata and My Crazy Mother, and Still Came Out Smiling (with Great Hair).
  • Shoe Cam Returns: Whoopi has officially brought back the shoe cam! If you want to see daily pictures of Whoopi’s amazing shoe choices, check out Whoopi on her Facebook page. And if you really want behind the scenes photos and videos you seriously need to follow The View on Twitter!
  • Frozen’s New Record: Rosie’s favorite movie just scored big again! Apparently, there have been more than three million Frozen costumes sold this year. Rosie O was hardly surprised and admitted her daughter owns a couple Frozen costumes herself. In fact, she wears them quite frequently! Rosie O thinks her youngest is extremely smart and talented and said she could be the next Shirley Temple. Whoopi asked Rosie O if she’s heard of the conspiracy theory that says Frozen is actually the same story as The Shining. Rosie O was a bit offended and scared too at the comparison! 😉
  • Peterson’s Plea: Adrian Peterson avoided jail time by making a plea deal in his child abuse case. Some are asking why Hope Solo, who has been charged with domestic violence for a family dispute, is still allowed to play her sport while Adrian Peterson has been suspended. Rosie O thinks it’s because Solo was accused of hitting her sister and a 17 year old family member in a dispute while Peterson was accused of hitting his very young child. She thinks the age of the victim might be the difference. Rosie P hopes Peterson receives counseling. She thinks he dodged a bullet because most people who have been accused of that crime would have gone to jail. She said children have been hurt and even killed because of child abuse and we can no longer use the “this is how I was taught to discipline my kids” excuse anymore. Whoopi seemed to understand both sides, in a way. She understands that some people in the black community once had to discipline their kids so severely in order to keep them in line so that they wouldn’t fall victim to acting out in a racist society. She referenced the Emmett Till case in which a young black man sassed a white woman and was brutally murdered for it. However, she agrees that the black community needs to find a different way to communicate with their children. Nicolle said state and local government need to play a role in protecting children in all instances of abuse. She believes the right to play in the NFL is a privilege and any NFL player (or citizen, for that matter) should go to jail for beating a child so badly they need to go to the doctor. She said, “You would go to jail for beating your dog like that!” In fact, Rosie O pointed out, the first child abuse case ever prosecuted was done so based off of our animal abuse laws. In 1874 it was illegal to abuse animals but there were no laws protecting children. Rosie P said when she was beaten she was like “hit me and I’ll hit you back.” Whoopi said older black women and black parents today need to understand that just because they were raised a certain way doesn’t make it okay. And yet she understood that they often raised their kids with an iron fist for fear that if they didn’t stay in line, they might end up dead.
  • Viral Video: Lea DeLaria joined the ladies of The View to discuss a recent video of her confrontation with a homophobic preacher on a New York City subway that has gone viral. Rosie O just loves Lea and was excited to have her on as a guest of the show. Lea discussed the video and what prompted her to confront the man. She said she was trying to memorize a scene from Orange Is the New Black as she was riding the subway to work when the man on the subway started spewing such hatred, sexism and homophobia, she couldn’t keep quiet. The ladies were all proud of her for standing up for herself! Lea said being on OITNB has been a dream gig for her. She joked that her entire career has been pretty much “don’t judge a butch by its cover.” Nicolle praised Lea for her outspokenness and called it an “international message against bullying.” Lea said she still regularly performs standup whenever she can find the time and will be singing at Lincoln Center’s American Songbook on February 5th! Click here to find out when tickets will become available! Rosie O asked Lea to perform a bit of the song I Can Cook Too from the role she originated in the play On the Town. You can follow Lea on her Facebook page to find out more about her standup schedule and where you can see her next! Also, check out this video flashback of Lea on The Rosie O’Donnell Show when she sang I Can Cook Too with Jesse Tyler Ferguson.

    Rosie O'Donnell & Lea DeLaria

    Rosie O’Donnell & Lea DeLaria

 

Guests:

Stevie Wonder: The amazing Stevie Wonder joined the ladies of The View to clear up some rumors and promote his Songs in the Key of Life tour. He cleared up a recent rumor about him supposedly having triplets with his girlfriend. He said the rumor is not true but they are expecting a baby girl in December who will be named Nia, which means “purpose.” Like he said in Superstition, “When you believe in things you don’t understand, you suffer.” Regarding his 11 city tour that begins tomorrow, Stevie said he decided to do the tour now because when he first created the album there was so much going on in his life. As the years have passed, and he’s reminisced about his life, he’s realized he wants to really show his appreciation to God, his friends and his family. When they asked him about his songwriting process, Stevie offered to create a song for The View! They sang together at the piano and the entire audience joined in. He said when he writes a song, the melody typically comes first and the lyrics come to him depending on what’s on his mind at the time. Regarding the rumor that he has stacks of unreleased music, he said that rumor is true! Whoopi mentioned the heartfelt performance of the song As that Stevie sang at Robin Williams’ memorial service. The song As was Stevie’s mother’s favorite song and he also played it at her funeral service when she passed away. The Songs in the Key of Life tour begins tomorrow! Stevie played the song As for the studio audience as they went to commercial.

Oscar De La Hoya: The Golden Boy of Boxing who’s won 10 World Championship titles, Oscar De La Hoya joined the ladies of The View! Oscar’s promotion company, Gold Boy Promotions, has kept him in the ring as one of the most powerful figures in professional boxing today. Oscar said it was important to him to get into management because fighters are people and he believes in treating them well and with the respect they deserve. He said the best lesson he’s learned in life is, “Ego is not my amigo.” He said his promotion company is not about him but about helping others trying to make it in this business. They discussed the Bernard Hopkins and Sergey Kovalev fight that will take place this Saturday November 8th and air on HBO. Oscar said Hopkins, at 49 years old, proves that age is just a number. After the commercial break Rosie O and Nicolle battled it out on a punching bag that rated the severity of their punch. The republicans may have won yesterday but Rosie O won the punching contest today. She received an autographed pair of boxing trunks signed by Oscar De La Hoya!  Watch a video of the contest on The View’s Facebook page here.

 

Audience Gift: Everyone in the studio audience received a copy of Disney’s Planes Fire and Rescue on DVD!

 

Take a little time to enjoy The View.