New York – Rosie O’Donnell has decided not to return to “The View” for her last three weeks after she and co-host Elisabeth Hasselbeck waged a bitter verbal battle on the air.
After the fight, O’Donnell hinted on her personal blog that she did not want to return to the show, and ABC officials confirmed today that she had asked for an early exit from her contract, which was to end June 21.
“We had hoped that Rosie would be with us until the end of her contract, … but Rosie has informed us that she would like an early leave,” daytime president Brian Frons of Disney-ABC Television Group said in a statement to ABCNews.com. “Therefore, we part ways, thank her for her tremendous contribution to ‘The View’ and wish her well.”
O’Donnell often had snippy exchanges with the more conservative Hasselbeck.
The argument with Hasselbeck on Wednesday, in a show that aired today, stemmed from O’Donnell’s statement last week about the war: “655,000 Iraqi civilians have died. Who are the terrorists?”
Talk-show critics accused O’Donnell of calling U.S. troops terrorists. She called Hasselbeck “cowardly” for not saying anything in response to the critics.
“Do not call me a coward because, No. 1, I sit here every single day, open my heart and tell people what I believe,” Hasselbeck retorted, and their exchange continued from there, despite failed attempts by their co-hosts to cut to a commercial.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
