Donald Trump found one defender — sort of — on Tuesday’s The View over his New York fraud judgement, in which he was ordered to pay more than $350 million and was barred from doing business in New York for three years.

Co-host Sara Haines broke with her co-hosts while discussing the judgement, calling it “excessive” and arguing it plays right into Trump’s hand, something Sunny Hostin and Whoopi Goldberg were quick to push back on.

“Although I always agree with someone being accountable and held to task and in a little bias, I love seeing Trump held to task because he rarely has been — I do think and this is not due to any emotion towards Trump, I think the punishment was excessive,” Haines said.

Trump was charged with fraud in New York, accused of inflating the value of properties for more favorable loans. Supporters argue it’s a victimless crime, though prosecutors argued the former president defrauded the federal government and state of New York with the activity.

Haines called the case “all legal,” but argued there were not direct victims like there are in a case where a pharmaceutical company is sued over a product, or even in the case of Trump’s now-defunct Trump University. Haines noted that victims of that “scam” were given $25 million in a settlement.

“My criticism of this is not because I feel any sorrow for Donald Trump, but I do think that he is an instigator of sowing distrust in institutions,” Haines argued. “It’s his one thing. Everyone’s completely kind of against him, it’s a political witch hunt, it’s personal — this ruling to the number it has been held is slightly playing into the optics that this was political and personal.”

“But the number was proven by evidence. There’s a paper trail,” Hostin shot back.

“It didn’t come out of nowhere,” Goldberg added.

Haines argued the number was still excessive, considering there were no “lingering” debts.

“I just think the number is excessive to prove the point and hold him accountable,” she said.

“Not if you say that you have a billion dollars,” Hostin said. She earlier questioned Trump’s finances and predicted his wealth would likely be revealed when he needs to cover at least a portion of the $350 million (he’d also need to show he has more than that amount to get a loan for a percentage of it to put down).

Golberg argued people should just accept the findings of the court.

“Either we say we want people to go to trial and get their comeuppance or we don’t,” she said.

Watch above via ABC.

The post The View Gets Heated After One Co-Host Calls the Trump $355M Fraud Ruling ‘Excessive’ first appeared on Mediaite.

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