‘The View’ debates whether celebrities should speak out about politics

“The View” co-hosts debated Tuesday about whether celebrities have more of an obligation to speak out on political issues or to entertain people and distract them from such concerns.

Country music superstar Kenny Chesney talked to Bill Maher on Monday’s episode of the “Club Random” podcast about why he personally rejects the idea that celebrities should tell people who to vote for.

“I never felt like it was my place,” Chesney said about celebrities speaking publicly about politics. “No matter where I play, it’s never been my thing to use my stage or my platform to tell people how to think or how to vote. Like, they get it everywhere, everywhere, on every device, on every network. They’re there as an escape from all that stuff.”

Co-host Whoopi Goldberg showed this conversation to her co-hosts and asked them for their thoughts.

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Co-host Joy Behar praised Bruce Springsteen, who is leading the anti-Trump No Kings tour, as an example of an outspoken celebrity.

“Springsteen walks the walk. He talks politics. He’s a great talent. He can deliver,” he said. “If you can, you should absolutely speak out. In a way, it’s America’s obligation.”

“That’s not everyone’s talent,” Goldberg replied.

Co-host Sara Haines recalled that actress Kerry Washington felt called to speak as a citizen but still said: “I love the places you can go — Reba McEntire said something similar to Kenny Chesney — ‘I provide the music that brings us all together.’ I like being able to control something and not have it be politics. It’s a 24/7 news cycle. That’s all I consume. “I need comedy, I need music.”

“But you’ll do your research to see where that is. Not everyone talks about politics. Not everyone wants that and shouldn’t,” Goldberg replied.

But Behar says, “He says he doesn’t think he can make a difference. I disagree. I think everyone can make a difference.”

Co-host Sunny Hostin counts Kenny Chesney as a close friend, although she says she believes celebrities’ calls for political action can greatly influence people.

“Kenny Chesney and I are good friends. I know this sounds weird to people, but I adore Kenny. We hang out a lot, we text each other, and we’ve never talked about politics. Never. That’s not his jam. That’s none of his business,” she said. “And I think what he said is absolutely true. He doesn’t feel the need to talk about it. He doesn’t feel like it belongs to him.”

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Musician Kenny Chesney sparked controversy on “The View” by revealing the main reason he refuses to get political in his shows. (Erika Goldring/Getty Images for BMI)

Behar replied, “Look, this is a free country. Do whatever you want.”

“We’ve talked about this many times at this table,” Hostin replied. I think if you have a platform and you’re comfortable using that platform to give a voice to people who don’t have a voice, you should do that. If you’re comfortable doing that.”

In May, the co-hosts of “The View” actually criticized musician Billy Bob Thornton for making a similar statement on a podcast.

During an appearance “Howie Mandel Does Something” podcastThe 70-year-old “Landman” actor explained why he’s not one to use his Hollywood platform to impose political or personal beliefs on others, paraphrasing Ricky Gervais’ famous quote warning against political speech during an awards show: “Take your little prize and go away.”

“I don’t know anything about politics,” Thornton said. “I have no idea. And I don’t want to shove what I believe in down someone else’s throat because I’m not an expert on it.”

Although Goldberg did not seem offended by the statement, Behar responded dismissively, saying, “Imagine bragging about how clueless you are.”

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“If you can, you should absolutely speak out. That’s sort of America’s obligation,” said “The View” co-host Joy Behar. (Gary Gershoff/Getty Images)

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Hostin agreed, saying: “We’re at a crisis point in this country. I think democracy is participatory. I think when you have a platform, that means I have a very big voice, and when you have a platform, I think you have a responsibility to speak out about what’s going on in this country, and in my view, silence is complicity. We need every single ally to speak out.”

But Goldberg concluded on Tuesday’s episode, “You shouldn’t expect that from anyone unless they offer it to you. If they offer it to you, that’s great. But if you call it, if you wait, if you get mad at what they don’t do, that’s pointless because every individual has the right to make their own decision, and sometimes that’s not for you.”