Rachel Maddow On "The View": Gets Praise From Elisabeth, Talks Coming Out, Limbaugh, Obama

Rachel Maddow made her "View" debut Thursday morning and covered a range of topics, from coming out to her conservative parents to her thoughts on Rush Limbaugh to why she thinks Barack Obama is the right President for the time.

Maddow — who, at 5'11", was described by Joy Behar as "a tall lesbian" — spoke, as she often does, about not being a typical "TV news babe." She discussed the first time she met her partner, Susan Mikula — like a scene from "Gay Desperate Housewives" — and how she came out: by plastering an announcement all over the dorm bathrooms at Stanford, without telling her parents (who received an anonymous letter alerting them to the news and "did not react well").

Maddow also described her look as a tomboy growing up.

"I had long blonde hair, but even as a little girl with long blonde hair, I looked like one of the Hanson boys," she said.

Maddow discussed her hate mail — of which there's a steady stream, some targeting her sexuality — but she also received an unlikely compliment from conservative co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck.

"You do an exceptional job," Elisabeth said. "I think it's important to recognize people who do a great job on both sides of issues."

Regarding man-of-the-moment Rush Limbaugh, Maddow said, "I think that Rush is very successful and very smart, and the idea that the President would actually debate him is hilarious. The idea that I would ask somebody from the Republican party...of course that would be great for me, but it would be stupid for any politician."

When asked about the economy and the administration, Maddow had high praise for the President.

"I think that we are in a pickle as a country," she said. "I think that the economic crisis is so much bigger than any of us can grasp. And I think that we need somebody with big ideas who's willing to take big action....I think the budget's a good budget, I think the stimulus plan is a good stimulus plan, I think we need to think big."

Watch:

Comments

[CHRIS337]

It's nice to see that "Pat" from the old SNL has a new gig!
Good for him/her!

[progressivelady]

This Pat has smart's and compassion, checkout her resume, all take an Ivy league girl over a dark rooted bleached blonde cotton candy for hair brainless nim wit anyday, just saying!

[CHRIS337]

progressivelady

"take an Ivy league girl over a dark rooted bleached blonde cotton candy for hair brainless nim wit anyday,"

Kindly point out the "progressive" parts of the statement above?
Or the "lady" parts!
Either or both! Your choice!

[Tkevan]

Um, BC is no community college. BTW, Stanford is not an "Ivy League" school.
Those would be Princeton, Brown, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth, Harvard, Penn, and Yale.

[CitizenJ]

The difference between Rachel and almost all other talking heads, is that she is an actual Ph.D and knows what she is talking about.

[lachgirl]

Its amazing to me they let a policy wonk be on the air. Or found a policy guru with enough patience to put up with the shouting heads.

She really is insightful and one of my favorite sources for news.

Especially in a time like ours, where so much is going on (and wrong), we need people that we can trust to deliver that news to us in a way that we can understand.

Thanks Rachel, for classing up the joint.

[Village]

What a crock. These are the new talking points for the GOPers. Pretend to like Obama while they try to destroy his administration.

[sagopalm]

Rachel is by far my favorite celebrity. I thought so when she was still a radio talk show host whom I'd never seen until last spring when she started to appear on MSNBC. The best looking tom boy ever. I feel gay man love for gay woman Rachel. LoL.
She's smart as a tack and funny and charismatic and gay as a goose and can go toe to toe with anyone on the opposing side, including the bombastic Pat Buchanan. Agree or disagree with him, he can be a tough debater and she's stood her ground with him numerous times. I've never once seen him win a round against her.

She always outshines whomever she shares the screen with.

[YellowDogInRedCounty]

As another gay man who loves Rachel, I do wish she would discuss gay issues a bit more. She hardly discusses them at all. I do not wish for hers to be the "gay show" on MSNBC but just think if she had spoken up just a tiny bit more about Prop 8 before the election - it might just have turned a few votes our way.

[ctekin]

I actually think that prop 8 passing is going to end up being a good thing for the LGBT community. I know that might sound crazy, but I believe that the issue got so big after the election, that it is leading us to a "once and for all" moment. I think in the very near future LGBT people will not only receive full marriage rights, but they will also be allowed to openly serve in the armed forces.

The day is coming, and it is long overdue, where LGBT people are recognized as not only equals, but as the national treasure that they are. These are our countrymen. And not only are they equal, but they are wonderfully talented and exceptional people who have so much to offer our society. Rachel is an example of that. The woman is a freaking national treasure in my opinion. Once we recognize the equality of LGBTs, we will be rewarded by the great contributions they will make to our society. When we liberate them from oppression and discrimination, they will ift us all up to new heights. I mean it.

[Ken Freedom]

She doesn't seem very keyed into social issues, probably as a result of being such a Huge Policy Nerd. Maybe she doesn't feel comfortable being critical of the culture. To really discuss gay issues beyond mentioning how gays are being used as a political football this election, you'd have to be pretty adept at discussing social currents and doing media criticism.

[TheSoldiersPal]

Rachel Maddow is extremely gifted and intelligent, no question about it. However, she is too often whimsical and giddy. I stopped watching, as it is very painful to watch her face contortions and farsical demeaner. I like what she does politically, but in my opinion, a more serious bearing and straightforward presentation would unquestionably improve her standing . When she does the latter, she is without equal. Otherwise, I can only stand watching her for about two minutes.

[flyrod]

You just described the exact reasons why I love her show. To each his/her own I suppose :)

[Michael Gibson]

Rachel Maddow is a bright light in today's world. She pulls no punches, and she has had some awesome "gets" lately. It's refreshing to see an intelligent person on the News, man, woman, gay or straight.

[vietveter]

She is the reason that I listened to Air America.

Not the would-be senator from MN.

[PhoenixtheUndying]

I would like to thank Ms. Maddow for finally saying what a lot of people have been thinking about our financial situation and the last eight years. Thanks to her, I don't have to yell at the news anymore.

[MNmommy]

I heart Rachel Maddow.

She handled la Ditz with so much class.

Rachel is made of awesome.

[SethBLiNK]

I bet if Matthews or Olberman were on, EH wouldn't have hestitated to lock horns. Because she knows that even if they beat her on intellect, she wins on sympathy. They can be overly aggressive, which makes them the Hannity and O'Reilly of the left. EH knows how to use this, just as she knows how to use being outnumbered to her favor.

But, she seems to instinctively know that she would have no route to victory by taking on Maddow. Maddow can outthink her and out-debate her too, just like Matthews or Olberman, but she also is saavy enough to do it graciously, and with a smile on her face, without appearing to be a bully taking on her intellectual inferior. Hasselback wouldn't have been able to play the poor outnumbered victim with Maddow and she would instead have looked like the rude person who fights with a guest and loses.

I give EH points for at least knowing when and with whom to pick her fights.

[watchful123]

Rachel would have been a great press secretary for Obama....S­he's great!

[HappyMarsden]

Described by Joy Behar as a "tall lesbian". How utterly homophobic and insulting, "Joy" Behar. Guess its okay in America to stereotype, pigeonhole and slap labels on people like that, but not okay to point out that your guest is a "fat black man" on the show, or a "short chinaman". "Tall lesbian"? How about "tall person", or just "woman"?

[nolajam]

Listen again Happy. RM said she's a huge Lesbian, to which Behar responded well you're a tall Lesbian.

[ggmome]

Dr Rachel Maddow, is all that and a bag of potato chips! This person can talk about things as mundane as Republicans and will hold your attention till the last sentence, and beyond the period paragraph.

What a facinating, super intelligent, captivating person! She is the absolute GREATEST!

[rr00]

I looooove Rachel Maddow! Her msnbc show is fantastic.

[rejoiceinit]

Rachel swatted Elisabeth away so easily. Elisabeth knows that Rachel is waaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaaaaaa­aaaaaay smarter than her!

[brooklyncitizen]

Nothing can beat authenticity and sincerity. What a contrast between Maddow's honesty and intelligence and Elisabeth's trolling artifice.

[papagato]

Yea, the difference was glaring.