Story highlights
"The View" co-hosts made comments about Miss Colorado, who is a nurse
Joy Behar questioned why she wore "a doctor's stethoscope"
Nurses across social media are up in collective arms after comments made on “The View” about a Miss America contestant.
#NursesUnite became a trending topic following a discussion on the daytime talk show about Miss Colorado Kelley Johnson. Johnson, who is a nurse, performed a monologue about her job while dressed in scrubs and wearing a stethoscope around her neck.
The hosts later said their comments were taken out of context.
“The View” co-host Michelle Collins discussed the performance on the show, saying that “there was a girl who wrote her own monologue and I was like ‘Turn the volume up, this is going be amazing, let’s listen.’ She came out in a nurse’s uniform and basically read her emails out loud and, shockingly, did not win.”
“I swear to God it was hilarious,” Collins said.
Co-host Joy Behar questioned, “Why does she have a doctor’s stethoscope on?”
The chat didn’t go over well for many people, some of whom complained about what they considered a lack of respect for their profession.
Behar also courted potential controversy with remarks about GOP presidential hopeful Carly Fiorina after her campaign ad was shown.
“She has the nerve to use the term women’s suffrage when she’s against Planned Parenthood and women’s maternity leaves,” Behar exclaimed. “She’s against Obamacare. She uses the term women’s suffrage? She should be ashamed of herself.”
“It’s not your face,” Behar said, referencing Donald Trump’s remark that Fiorina didn’t have the face voters want to see as president. “It’s your policy.”
The hosts addressed the comments about Johnson on Wednesday’s show.
“I was not talking about her as a nurse. I was talking about the talent competition and it got misconstrued,” Collins said. “We love nurses. We adore you. We respect you. You guys are wonderful.”
Behar said she was being “stupid and inattentive” when she made the stethoscope comment.
“I did not know she was a nurse. I’m used to seeing (the contestants) in gowns and bathing suits so it’s not like I was trying to be funny,” she said.
Noting that her niece is a nurse and her son-in-law is a physician assistant, Behar said she knows nurses uses stethoscopes.
“I just was not paying attention,” she said. “I didn’t know know what the hell I was talking about.”
After all, Behar noted, “Nurses: We’re at their mercy, let’s face it.”