On Monday, “The View” co-host Sunny Hostin raised some eyebrows after she blamed Monday’s solar eclipse, Friday’s earthquake, and the expected cicada breeding season on “climate change.” The co-host made her argument during the show’s “Hot Topics” segment, drawing pushback from co-hosts Joy Behar and Whoopi Goldberg.
A 4.8-magnitude earthquake was felt across New York and New Jersey on Friday, sending shockwaves through the region. Hostin pointed to the earthquake as one of the reasons to believe in climate change. However, her fellow co-hosts were quick to push back, citing earthquakes having little to do with climate change.
“Except earthquakes are not at the mercy of climate change,” argued Behar. “It’s underground. It can’t.”
Hostin, however, remained firm in her beliefs. She pointed to the warming of the planet as a possible connection to the earthquake, prompting Goldberg to remind her that the eclipse was not linked to climate change either. The eclipse was a naturally occurring phenomenon and was expected to happen based on astronomical predictions.
The co-hosts then moved on to the topic of the cicada breeding season. Hostin argued that the simultaneous emergence of two different cicada broods was a rare occurrence and could possibly be linked to climate change. However, Goldberg disagreed, stating that the emergence of the insects every 17 years was a completely natural event.
While the co-hosts debated about the possible impact of climate change on these events, another theory emerged. Co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin joked that President Donald Trump may have caused the earthquake. Her statement was in response to reports that the epicenter of the earthquake was at Bedminster in New Jersey, where Trump currently has a golf course.
Griffin’s statement drew some laughter from the other co-hosts, but it also sparked backlash on social media. Some users found the statement distasteful, as it seemed to make light of a natural disaster.
This is not the first time that someone has come under fire for linking the earthquake to something other than natural causes. Green Party member and U.S. Senate candidate for New Jersey Christina Amira Khalil went viral after she posted a similar theory on social media.
“I experienced my first earthquake in NJ. We never get earthquakes,” she wrote. “The climate crisis is real. The weirdest experience ever.”
The post was met with widespread mockery and received an X "Community Note" fact check providing more context. Khalil eventually deleted the post and switched her account to "protected" mode to make her posts private.
Overall, the debate on "The View" sparked conversation about climate change and the impact it may have on natural events. While some argued that these events were purely natural and not linked to climate change, others pointed out the potential effects of our changing climate. As the debate continues, it is important to have open and informative discussions about the topic, rather than jumping to conclusions or making light of natural disasters.