Abby Huntsman discusses her first month at The View, how she handles talking politics with her father in the administration, building friendships with the co-hosts and more in a special edition of The View’s podcast.
“It’s been a whirlwind.” In an interview with two of The View's Executive Producers Candi Carter and Brian Teta, Huntsman tells them her one month so far at The View “feels like … a year already.”
“A lot of that is the news cycle that doesn’t slow down,” she said. “When you go on there every day, and you are talking about the tough issues that everyone at home is talking about. Those conversations behind closed doors can be uncomfortable sometimes. You’re out there in front of the American people.”
She says despite things getting tense at times at the table, “We’re in this thing together. When the show’s off, we’re still friends. So, you realize every day, it’s a responsibility.”
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“I think the biggest change for me… is this live audience!” she says. “You go out there, and there’s this energy. People come to the show and they wait here all morning long to be here, and they’re excited. It’s not just a performance, but I think we’re really impacting people as we do it ... The unpredictability of the show every day is what’s been the biggest change for me. I learn something new every day!”
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“We realized how different we are personality-wise … we are night and day from each other. We laugh about that all the time,” Huntsman says. “But I think a lot of our values are similar in what we feel is most important to us — our family and what we believe and standing strong on those is what keeps us close and we learn from each other.”
She says that relationship is so important, especially in the current climate.
“You don’t see people that are willing to say ‘You know what, you might be different politically, but let’s find some common ground, let’s find ways that we’re actually similar,’” Huntsman says. “We just assume immediately that we have nothing in common, what can even talk to that person about.”
Despite their different views, she also points out both she and Meghan each have a sister adopted from India and two brothers in the military: “We share a lot of those values and that comes from our parents and I’m grateful for that. Because we live in a world where we don’t see that anymore.”
Because Huntsman’s father, Jon Huntsman Jr., has served as U.S. Ambassador to Russia since 2017 under President Trump, she acknowledges she’s often put in the hot seat.
She says her dad told her: “’Look, you go be you. You go speak your mind. You’re not there to speak on my behalf, you’re not there to speak on the president’s behalf.’”
Not all Hot Topics discussed at the table are serious — she remembers one in particular about her parents’ sex lives.
“You say things that are personal because that’s what the show is … I was so worried after that moment that I was gonna get yelled at,” she remembered. “And my mom called and [said] ‘That’s great,’ I think people should be proud of the relationship that they have!”
Huntsman says one of the guests who stood out most was Kelly Clarkson: “She was so surprisingly humble and just fun out there, just herself – and that's probably why she's been so successful all these years.”
Every episode of ABC's award-winning talk show "The View" is now available as a podcast! Listen and subscribe for free on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, TuneIn, Spotify, Stitcher or the ABC News app.