'The View': Former Co-Host Jedediah Bila Returns, Clashes With Joy Behar and Sunny Hostin

11/18/2021 01:56 am EST

Former The View panelist Jedediah Bila returned to the show for Wednesday's episode and the conservative ex-Fox News pundit quickly stepped into the shoes of Meghan McCain by getting into a heated clash with Joy Behar and Sunny Hostin. Bila appeared on the episode to promote her new memoir, Dear Hartley, but the conversation was diverted to a separate topic regarding vaccine mandates. 

"Let's discuss the elephant in the room," said co-host Joy Behar. "You were supposed to join us in the studio weeks ago, but you couldn't because ABC has a very strict policy that you can't get into this building unless you're fully vaccinated…and you made a conscious decision not to get vaccinated."

Bila clarified her stance on the decision, saying that it's not entirely rooted in an anti-vax stance –– rather she's against company-enforced vaccine mandates. "I am not anti-vax," Bila said, "but what I really want is for people to make these decisions for themselves."

She went on to explain why she opposed the mandate, telling the table that it "does not prevent you from getting COVID and transmitting COVID." To which, Behar bemoaned in response, "Oh my goodness. You have been at Fox News too long." Bila, who served on the show during the 2016-2017 season, told the table that she had a "medical exemption" that an "infectious disease specialist" and three other doctors can attest to. She also claimed that she has a "sky-high, multi-tiered, multi-faceted natural immunity."

Hostin jumped in the conversation to set some of the facts straight on the episode. "762,000 people have died of Covid including [husband] Manny's parents. We've been friends a long time but I just don't understand why you would prioritize your personal freedom over the health and safety of others," she offered as a rebuttal, adding that The View shouldn't be a place for Bila to share "misinformation." "We have had the United States Surgeon General debunk everything you just said," she told Bila.

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