Alyssa Farah Griffin sided with President Donald Trump on this morning’s episode of The View, making the surprising admission that she’s unbothered by his proclamation renaming the Gulf of Mexico to the Gulf of America.
While discussing the White House’s decision to block a reporter from the Associated Press after the AP used the term Gulf of Mexico instead of Gulf of America, Griffin said she disagreed with the White House’s actions against the AP, but had no issue with the Gulf of America renaming.
“I don’t actually hate renaming the Gulf of America, and I’m going to tell you why,” she said. “It’s a more inclusive term. It is North America. Mexico and the United States are part of the Americas.”
She continued, “It would be petty if he called it the Gulf of the United States by basically saying it’s our country’s, it’s not yours. But these are the things Donald Trump does to trigger a reaction from the media so they cover this and pay more attention [to it] than we’re wholesale getting rid of government agencies, or we’re confirming Tulsi Gabbard as director of national intelligence.”
Griffin reiterated that she has no problems with the newly named Gulf of America, insisting, “I’m perfectly fine with it, and I’m perfectly fine with the AP covering it how they think they should.”
The AP’s policy uses the Gulf’s historic name, but the news organization also notes Trump’s new name for the region. Because they’re a global news agency, the AP “must ensure that place names and geography are easily recognizable to all audiences.”
This explanation didn’t go over well at the White House, where two AP reporters were denied access because of the news organization’s style guide.
In a clip played on today’s episode of The View, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters yesterday (Feb. 12), “It is a privilege to cover this White House. Nobody has the right to go into the Oval Office and ask the president of the United States questions. That’s an invitation that is given.”
The View airs weekdays at 11/10c on ABC.
