'The View' host warns Democrats about how performatively ‘screaming’ at rallies is not fixing the country

Sara Haines, one of the more moderate co-hosts on "The View," warned that the Democratic Party needs to shift away from performative yelling and towards pragmatic action.

"The View" co-host Whoopi Goldberg noted that progressive leaders like Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y. and Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., are speaking at rallies across the country, however, "at a moment when leadership roles on the left are wide open."

Goldberg also recalled that Sanders showed in his recent interview he is "not ready to talk about future party planning yet." Sanders had made headlines for getting up during a pre-taped ABC "This Week" interview that aired Sunday, where he had accused Jonathan Karl of asking a "nonsense" question about whether Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., should run for the Senate. This comes amid speculation about Ocasio-Cortez challenging Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer in a primary after Schumer joined Republicans in support of a government funding bill to avoid a partial shutdown.

"The View" co-host Sara Haines called on Democrats to embrace pragmatism rather than performative rhetoric. (ABC/"The View")

BERNIE SANDERS, AOC TAKE AIM AT TRUMP AND MUSK, AS WELL AS DEMOCRATS

"So Bernie, AOC are out there, people are really kind of annoyed a lot about what’s going on, maybe not everything, but much more than we were seeing perhaps in the media and on different shows," Goldberg said.

Co-host Ana Navarro suggested, "People are thirsty, desperate, to hear somebody that gives them fire, that leads them into this fight, that channels their anger and their frustration. They want to hear from those people. That’s why Bernie Sanders and AOC are getting 34,000 people to show up to a rally in Denver. Fifteen thousand people to show up to a rally in Phoenix. I mean, think about this. They are not running. This is not an election year. This is two months into the Trump Administration, and they are getting tens of thousands of people because people want to fight, and they want somebody that will lead them in that fight."

Co-host Sunny Hostin said that while many voters indeed want a "fighting opposition party," the actual policies of Ocasio-Cortez and Sanders would be unpopular.

"They want a fighting opposition party and that’s the majority of the country. I think that’s why AOC and Bernie are sort of packing these things," she said. "What I will say is, I don’t know that the message is correct. I think that their messaging is a little bit off. If you look at what people want and are looking for, because costs and economy is still No. 1 and taxing the rich may not do that for the majority of people. They want to see much more of an action plan. How do you address my pain?"

Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, D-N.Y., speaks onstage during the first day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 19, 2024, in Chicago, Illinois. ( Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)

However, Haines argued that rhetoric is not enough to drag the Democratic Party out of its current slump.

"I can see why people like the AOCs, the Bernie Sanders, I can feel myself clapping along, but the problem here is whereas they’re tapping into the anger, I don’t think just screaming and kind of performative, ‘We’re gonna fight’ is the way to go," she said. "I want absolutely solutions and that’s why I like Sen. Slotkin, who I keep repeating here over and over. She said, ‘I’m a pragmatist,’ and I’m a pragmatist. She is from a purple state. You can’t come at it just like – an AOC comes from a completely blue area, Bernie Sanders, completely blue area. Elissa Slotkin, Trump won her state." 

"So when you are dealing with that electorate and a country that’s divided," she said, it requires a different school of thought. "I love to hear you shout, but I’m much more the person that says, ‘Show me what that got you.’ If screaming got you some budget plan or a resolution or compromise, then bravo I will be the loudest one behind you. It didn’t. So I’m a more, ‘Put your heads down, unite under something and get your messaging going.’"

Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., speaks on stage during the final day of the Democratic National Convention at the United Center on August 22, 2024, in Chicago, Illinois.  (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)

Fox News' Pilar Arias contributed to this report.

Alexander Hall is an associate editor for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..