Behind the Conversation: Joy Behar Unpacks the ‘Reasonable’ Marjorie Taylor Greene and the Power of the Mid-Life Awakening

In the unpredictable theatre of modern American politics, nothing is more compelling than the rare moments when ideological enemies meet, not for a brawl, but for a “frank conversation.” This was the atmosphere on a recent episode of The View, which played host to one of the Republican party’s most polarizing figures, Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene. Yet, according to the post-show reflections from Joy Behar, the real drama unfolded after the cameras stopped rolling, revealing a layered political strategy and prompting a candid, deeply personal reflection on life’s unexpected second acts.

Speaking on the Behind the Table podcast, Behar and her co-host peeled back the layers of Greene’s surprising appearance, which was described using descriptors rarely associated with the firebrand Republican: “reasonable,” “even-keeled,” and “tempered.” The prevailing expectation, as the host noted, was a “fight” or “craziness.” Instead, Greene arrived for an open-ended exchange where, according to the hosts, “nothing was off limits.” She even offered praise, recognizing the hosts for doing “a great job exchanging ideas” in a “professional way.” This unexpected civility, however, did not signal a truce for Behar, but rather a chilling display of political acuity.

The MTG Enigma: A Strategy of Self-Preservation

For Behar, Greene’s newly calibrated public persona—a departure from her reputation for theatrical public displays—was not a sign of a genuine change of heart, but a calculated political maneuver. Joy Behar, ever the astute political commentator, unveiled her bombshell theory: Marjorie Taylor Greene is “hedging her bets” because she “sees the writing on the wall” regarding the political landscape.

Behar’s argument is rooted in cold, hard polling data. She cited figures showing “almost 70% of Americans say that the country is pretty seriously on the wrong trap,” and crucially, a majority blaming Donald Trump for a worsening economy and inflation. To Behar, the Congresswoman is “smart enough to see that that is what’s going on.” The reasonable appearance, therefore, is not a newfound maturity but a savvy, preemptive strategy to “keep her job” by subtly distancing herself from a politically vulnerable former President. “She’s not stupid,” Behar observed. The unexpected respect Behar granted Greene was for having the gumption to come to the table and engage, a rare move she suggested other prominent Republicans, like Speaker Johnson, should emulate. The entire exchange re-framed Greene from a fringe agitator to a calculated political operative, proving that in Washington, every conversation is an audition.

This strategic reading of Greene’s behavior led naturally to a discussion of the ongoing government shutdown controversy. Greene, during her interview, had deemed the shutdown “disgusting” and placed the blame squarely on House Speaker Mike Johnson. However, Behar dismissed this finger-pointing, choosing to redirect the blame to the ultimate source of power in the Republican sphere. Invoking the proverb, “the fish stinks from the head,” Behar argued that Trump is the true puppet master, possessing the influence to make Johnson “snap to it.” The consensus from the hosts was clear: the Speaker’s actions appear to be directly aligned with the former President’s wishes.

Echoes of History: Cheney, Bush, and the American Identity

The conversation then broadened to a historical political context with the news of former Vice President Dick Cheney’s passing. Behar recalled interviewing Cheney on The View. The most significant detail, however, was not the interview itself, but Cheney’s later pivot—his endorsement of Kamala Harris, turning on Donald Trump. This shift prompted Behar to draw a sharp contrast between the Republican administrations of the past and the present.

The Bush administration, which included Cheney, was characterized by Behar as fundamentally “Americans for America.” She expressed a feeling that the current administration’s focus on other countries—”bailing out Argentina, listening to Putin”—represented a profound deviation from a core American-first sensibility that she believes was central to the Bush era. Cheney’s ultimate endorsement of a Democrat was seen through a classic political lens: “the enemy of my enemy is my friend,” a desperate, final stand by a member of the old guard against what they perceived as a greater threat to the soul of the party and the nation.

The Unformed Human: Joy’s Path to Her True Self at 40

In a powerful emotional pivot, the political sparring gave way to an intimate discussion on personal timelines, culminating in Joy Behar’s most profound revelation. Responding to a question about advice for 20-somethings feeling rushed by societal timelines, Behar laid bare her own experience of delayed self-discovery.

She confessed that she felt “rushed” into her first marriage at the young age of 22. In the social climate before the women’s liberation movement, her only option to move in or even “sleep with the person” was to get married. It was a time when she was, by her own admission, still an “unformed human.”

The most impactful part of her story began when that marriage ended. She was 40 years old when she got divorced, an age she recalls as her moment of reckoning. “I really started to pay attention to my life,” she stated. This period was made more challenging by the fact that the supportive social safety net—programs like free master’s degree education offered during the Vietnam War era—had vanished. Suddenly, the world was no longer offering her free help; she realized, “I needed to make a living, I needed to have a career, I needed to make money, I need to take care of my daughter.” This profound need for self-sufficiency and financial independence forced her to “get smart.”

Her eventual “aha moment,” the event that fully catalyzed her transformation, was the day she was sensationally fired from Good Morning America, where she had been working as a receptionist. That career setback, far from being a failure, became the defining moment that forced her to step fully into her power and become the “formed human” she is today. Her story is a powerful testament that a person’s true career and life path often begins not on the timelines society dictates, but when necessity and emotional maturity finally align, often much later than expected.

Final Cultural Notes: The Trivial and the Tasteless

The conversation concluded with lighter, yet still opinionated, commentary. Behar congratulated former co-host Sherri Shepherd on receiving her star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, though Behar maintained a humorous preference for her own figurative star in the “Brooklyn Botanical Gardens,” affirming her identity as a “simple girl with a simple dream” rooted in her beloved Brooklyn.

The hosts also grumbled over the trivial disruption of Daylight Saving Time. Behar, perpetually groggy, complained her dog had not yet adjusted, waking her up an hour early.

Finally, the discussion turned to the boundaries of public taste, specifically addressing the trend of adults taking over Halloween. They universally criticized a woman who had dressed up as Jacqueline Kennedy immediately after her husband’s assassination, deeming the choice “poor taste” and “not funny.” Behar argued that while jokes about historical tragedies like Lincoln’s assassination might now be acceptable due to the passage of time, the Kennedy assassination is still too recent, with his children still alive, making the costume a thoughtless offense.

The Behind the Table discussion ultimately proved that even a conversation meant to analyze the politics of the day can serve as a canvas for much deeper self-reflection. From the calculated strategy of Marjorie Taylor Greene to the powerful, delayed self-awakening of Joy Behar, the hosts delivered a nuanced portrait of modern political survival and the unpredictable timeline of human becoming.