Joy Behar Challenges Kirsten Gillibrand: Why'd You Push Out Al Franken?

Joy Behar kicked off an interview with Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D-N.Y.) on Monday by confronting the lawmaker for calling on Sen. Al Franken to resign after being publicly accused of sexual misconduct. 

Franken, whose last official day in office was Jan. 2, announced his resignation from Congress after eight women publicly accused him  of behavior ranging from unwanted advances to unwanted groping and kissing. Gillibrand was the first Democratic lawmaker to call on him to step down.

“I just thought that was unfair to make him an example,” Behar said during Gillibrand’s appearance on “The View.”

Behar asked why Democrats didn’t hold a hearing and compared the allegations made against Franken to those made against President Donald Trump . At least 20 women have accused the president of sexual harassment and misconduct .

“Why did you push Franken out?” Behar pressed. 

Gillibrand called Franken a friend and the situation “heartbreaking.” Still, she said, he had to go.

“He’s entitled a hearing. He is. But he’s not entitled to my silence, Joy,” Gillibrand said. She added that the allegations against Franken were different from those against other men in politics, including Trump, but said they all deserved attention and action. 

“Why would you want to hold our elected leaders to the lowest standard and not the highest standard?” she asked. 

Check out the heated clash in the video above.

Gillibrand, a frequent Trump critic, has invited San Juan Mayor Carmen Yulín Cruz to accompany her to the State of the Union address on Tuesday. Trump lashed out at Cruz in September when she requested aid to improve the humanitarian crisis caused by Hurricane Maria.