The View’s Whoopi Goldberg made the case Thursday for the championship-winning New York Knicks players to meet President Donald Trump at the White House.

Goldberg pointed out Thursday that “no NBA team has ever accepted an invite to the White House while you-know-who has been there.”

“I’m feeling two ways about it,” said Joy Behar. “Like, yes, maybe you have to respect the White House. You don’t have to respect who’s in the White House, though.”

“But I think there’s a reason why every single — the previous five previous NBA champions crowned during the Trump administration — refused to go. And that’s because he politicizes the events that come before him. That’s one of the problems,” Sunny Hostin said to audience applause.

As Hostin continued, Goldberg interrupted.

“I want them to go,” Goldberg said. “I want all those Black men to stand in our house and remind all of those people, as we tried to remind the Vice President, that when you try to destroy one part of history, you’re destroying all of our histories. And they, as champions — not only as amazing basketball players, but as people who were down and came back up — this is what this looks like. This is what this looks like,” she repeated. “So, I want them to go. I want them to go. If only, so the kids know, that nobody — nobody — can keep you down if you are rising up.”

The audience went wild at Goldberg’s take.

“I remain very conflicted over it because, I do think it puts a lot of pressure on these players and a lot of pressure on the captain of the team, Jalen Brunson,” Hostin added. “I think it puts a lot of pressure on, because Jose Alvarado, the Puerto Rican player, was already approached and asked, you know, ‘Will you go to the White House?’ And he said, ‘I will do what my team decides.’
So it’s probably going to be a decision that’s made between the coach, as well as the captain, and all the players.”

“And the contrast matters. What you were saying about showing up there and standing tall,” Sarah Haines said, acknowledging Goldberg. “We just had a UFC fighter who said a degrading slur about a former first lady. And, why don’t you show up and show them what real men look like?”

“Exactly!” agreed Alyssa Farah Griffin.

Watch the clip above via ABC’s The View.

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