In September 2006, O'Donnell replaced Meredith Vieira as a co-host and moderator of The View, a daytime women-oriented talk show.
Star Jones, a co-host on the show, quit, with some speculating Jones's conservative views would be in constant tension with O'Donnell's more liberal counterpoint.
O'Donnell had also disputed Jones's route of rapid weight loss, alluding that it must have been through gastric bypass surgery, rather than dieting and exercise alone as Jones had insisted, which also fed speculation about certain tension between the two. (
Jones later confirmed that surgery was involved.)
O'Donnell is credited with keeping the show's "buzz factor up".
She is also credited with making it more news-focused, though it still embraced the "fluff" of daytime TV talk shows (celebrities, fashion, and food).
Despite an overall downward trend for most daytime broadcast shows, ratings rose by 27% during O'Donnell's first year on The View.
The show was the fourth-most-watched in all of daytime in the key demographic of women ages 18–49 and scored record ratings in the total viewer category with an average of 3.4 million viewers—up 15% versus the same time in 2005.
O'Donnell moderated the opening "Hot Topics" portion of the show, where news items were discussed.
O'Donnell gave the show a more political slant, and she and fellow comic Joy Behar often gave strong opinions against former President Bush's domestic and foreign policies, including the Iraq War.
As a conservative counterpoint, Elisabeth Hasselbeck would usually support the Bush administration's policies and the two would get into an adversarial give-and-take.

Encouraged by the show to be outspoken, O'Donnell sometimes provoked debate, at one time stating "radical Christianity is just as threatening as radical Islam."
On the February 24, 2003 episode of Phil Donahue's talk show, O'Donnell referred to the sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic archdiocese of Boston resulting in $157 million awarded to 983 claimants, stating "I hope the Catholic Church gets sued until the end of time.
Maybe, you know, we can melt down some of the gold toilets in the Pope's Vatican and pay off some of the lawsuits because, the whole tenet of living a Christ-like life, has been lost in Catholicism."

O'Donnell joked about communion rituals alongside co-host Behar's drunk priest comments.
On April 19, 2007, the panel discussed the Supreme Court of the United States's ruling in Gonzales v. Carhart, a decision upholding the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act.
O'Donnell cited a Florynce Kennedy quote, "If men could get pregnant abortion would be a sacrament" and asked rhetorically "How many Supreme Court judges are Catholic?"
and "How about separation of church and state?"
Some conservative commentators deemed her statements "anti-Catholic bigotry" and suggested that such statements against other religions would not be tolerated.
O'Donnell's outspokenness and spontaneousness sometimes led to her views being recirculated by other media outlets, often surprising The View co-hosts including O'Donnell.
Frequently portrayed unfavorably by conservative media outlets and what she deemed as Republican pundits, O'Donnell lamented that they were focusing on her comments instead of more important national and world issues.

On December 5, 2006, O'Donnell used a series of ching chongs to imitate newscasters in China.
Vanessa Hua of the San Francisco Chronicle expressed disappointment in O'Donnell, given the comedian's championing of LGBT rights.
On December 14, O'Donnell apologized to those she offended, explaining that "Some people have told me it's as bad as the n-word.
I was like, really?
I didn't know that."
O'Donnell warned that "there's a good chance I'll do something like that again, probably in the next week, not on purpose.
Only 'cause it's how my brain works."
Time called it a "pseudo-apology".
O'Donnell later wrote in Celebrity Detox that "I wish I had been a bit more pure in my public apology."

In December 2006, O'Donnell criticized Donald Trump for holding a press conference to reinstate Miss USA Tara
In September 2006, O'Donnell replaced Meredith Vieira as a co-host and moderator of The View, a daytime women-oriented talk show. Star Jones, a co-host on the show, quit, with some speculating Jones's conservative views would be in constant tension with O'Donnell's more liberal counterpoint. O'Donnell had also disputed Jones's route of rapid weight loss, alluding that it must have been through gastric bypass surgery, rather than dieting and exercise alone as Jones had insisted, which also fed speculation about certain tension between the two. (Jones later confirmed that surgery was involved.) O'Donnell is credited with keeping the show's "buzz factor up". She is also credited with making it more news-focused, though it still embraced the "fluff" of daytime TV talk shows (celebrities, fashion, and food). Despite an overall downward trend for most daytime broadcast shows, ratings rose by 27% during O'Donnell's first year on The View. The show was the fourth-most-watched in all of daytime in the key demographic of women ages 18–49 and scored record ratings in the total viewer category with an average of 3.4 million viewers—up 15% versus the same time in 2005. O'Donnell moderated the opening "Hot Topics" portion of the show, where news items were discussed. O'Donnell gave the show a more political slant, and she and fellow comic Joy Behar often gave strong opinions against former President Bush's domestic and foreign policies, including the Iraq War. As a conservative counterpoint, Elisabeth Hasselbeck would usually support the Bush administration's policies and the two would get into an adversarial give-and-take.
Encouraged by the show to be outspoken, O'Donnell sometimes provoked debate, at one time stating "radical Christianity is just as threatening as radical Islam." On the February 24, 2003 episode of Phil Donahue's talk show, O'Donnell referred to the sexual abuse scandal in the Catholic archdiocese of Boston resulting in $157 million awarded to 983 claimants, stating "I hope the Catholic Church gets sued until the end of time. Maybe, you know, we can melt down some of the gold toilets in the Pope's Vatican and pay off some of the lawsuits because, the whole tenet of living a Christ-like life, has been lost in Catholicism."
O'Donnell joked about communion rituals alongside co-host Behar's drunk priest comments. On April 19, 2007, the panel discussed the Supreme Court of the United States's ruling in Gonzales v. Carhart, a decision upholding the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act. O'Donnell cited a Florynce Kennedy quote, "If men could get pregnant abortion would be a sacrament" and asked rhetorically "How many Supreme Court judges are Catholic?" and "How about separation of church and state?" Some conservative commentators deemed her statements "anti-Catholic bigotry" and suggested that such statements against other religions would not be tolerated. O'Donnell's outspokenness and spontaneousness sometimes led to her views being recirculated by other media outlets, often surprising The View co-hosts including O'Donnell. Frequently portrayed unfavorably by conservative media outlets and what she deemed as Republican pundits, O'Donnell lamented that they were focusing on her comments instead of more important national and world issues.
On December 5, 2006, O'Donnell used a series of ching chongs to imitate newscasters in China. Vanessa Hua of the San Francisco Chronicle expressed disappointment in O'Donnell, given the comedian's championing of LGBT rights. On December 14, O'Donnell apologized to those she offended, explaining that "Some people have told me it's as bad as the n-word. I was like, really? I didn't know that." O'Donnell warned that "there's a good chance I'll do something like that again, probably in the next week, not on purpose. Only 'cause it's how my brain works." Time called it a "pseudo-apology". O'Donnell later wrote in Celebrity Detox that "I wish I had been a bit more pure in my public apology."
In December 2006, O'Donnell criticized Donald Trump for holding a press conference to reinstate Miss USA Tara 
Rosie O'Donnell