Elisabeth Hasselbeck is Leaving Fox & Friends to Raise Her Children

Fox News reported yesterday that Elisabeth Hasselbeck is stepping down as co-host of Fox & Friends. You may remember Hasselbeck as the one who has been appointed to be the one who says things too stupid for anyone else to say. And she’s good at her job. She parlayed her decade-long stint on The View into a job on Fox News where there was nobody to tell her she was wrong.

Fox News announced that she will “depart the network at the end of the year, putting her television career on hold while she raises her three children.” She will be replaced by a rotating series of co-hosts until a permanent replacement is found.

Hasselbeck said in a statement:

“Oftentimes, the most difficult decisions are between two great things. Throughout my 14 years working in television, I have never experienced a more positive and thoughtful atmosphere than FOX News Channel, thanks to the strong leadership of (FOX News Chairman & CEO) Roger Ailes, who has created the best working environment a woman and mother could ask for. His understanding, compassion, and kindness was exemplified when I shared with him that I am entering into a season where I want to start my day with my children first, and he offered his blessing to do so. With a heart full of gratitude and the peace that God has given me, I am confident that this personal decision is the right one for our family, and we will be joining all of you watching ‘Fox & Friends’ each morning as we get ready for school together.”

To get more stories like this, subscribe to our newsletter The Daily.

Ailes himself had this to say:

“Elisabeth and I discussed this at length over several weeks, and while I would love for her to continue here, I respect her incredibly difficult, yet deeply personal decision. She has been a great addition to the ‘Fox & Friends’ franchise.”

Yeah, Elisabeth is pretty special. Remember in September when she asked, over a demonstration at the Minnesota State Fair, “Why has the Black Lives Matter movement not been classified as a hate group?”

This is really kind of funny because Hasselbeck is a big Tea Party supporter, and if the Tea Party, with its rampant racism and homophobia, isn’t a hate group I don’t know what it is. Those Confederate battle flags are saying something, and it’s not “I love you.”

Then there was the time back in 2007 when she suggested people get abortions for “superficial reasons.” That was an adorable moment. “You also cannot ignore the fact that there are abortions done for superficial reasons and for reasons that are not extreme,” she asserted. We can’t? How do we know what she is saying is true? “It’s my personal feeling.” Oh, well, we can’t deny its true then, can we?

We are all familiar with Ben Carson’s theory about how prison makes you gay. Hasselbeck has a theory about lesbianism. Remember how in 2010 she figured out that older women can’t get men, so they turn gay?

Then there was the time back in 2008 she got upset that Gloria Steinem said that our troops in Iraq are trained to kill (wouldn’t be much use as soldiers if they weren’t but saying it for Hasselbeck is a “despicable mischaracterization”) and insisted Steinem should “shut up,” because these soldiers are “protecting [Gloria’s] freedom to run her mouth.”

So, essentially, Hasselbeck is telling us, Steinem has no freedom of speech because those soldiers are defending her freedom of speech.

Like I said, the one who says things too stupid for anyone else to say. Even thinking about this stuff kills brain cells, so let’s stop now, shall we?

All I can say is that in this case, I applaud Hasselbeck’s family values. By all means, go raise your children. Please. I feel bad for them, sure I do, but it’s every man for himself. I survived conservative parents; her kids can too.

Will she be missed? No. Only by people who aren’t smart enough to know they’re as stupid as she is. Can she be replaced? Look at her panel of cohosts and answer that for yourself. This is the group, after all, who invoke Chuck Norris in discussions of religious liberty in public schools and slammed Obama’s use of scripture as “repugnant” and “out of bounds.”

This is a network that constantly finds new lows to which to sink. We’ve had a lot of fun with Hasselbeck over the years, and for good reason, but I don’t think a new Elisabeth Hasselbeck is out of the question, do you?

Hrafnkell Haraldsson

Hrafnkell Haraldsson, a social liberal with leanings toward centrist politics has degrees in history and philosophy. His interests include, besides history and philosophy, human rights issues, freedom of choice, religion, and the precarious dichotomy of freedom of speech and intolerance. He brings a slightly different perspective to his writing, being that he is neither a follower of an Abrahamic faith nor an atheist but a polytheist, a modern-day Heathen who follows the customs and traditions of his Norse ancestors. He maintains his own blog, A Heathen’s Day, which deals with Heathen and Pagan matters, and Mos Maiorum Foundation www.mosmaiorum.org, dedicated to ethnic religion. He has also contributed to NewsJunkiePost, GodsOwnParty and Pagan+Politics.