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- Meghan McCain, the daughter of Sen. John McCain, has reacted to criticism she received for slamming Violet Affleck.
- The former View cohost deleted her Violet criticism from X shortly after posting it.
- McCain said, “it takes one to know one. I’m clearly a nepo baby” in her incendiary response.
One day after she posted — and quickly deleted — a harsh criticism of Ben Affleck and Jennifer Garner‘s 19-year-old daughter, Violet Affleck, for advocating for public health in a United Nations speech, former The View cohost Meghan McCain has doubled down on her incendiary critique of the stars’ child.
The daughter of Sen. John McCain, who famously vocalized her familial ties several times from her post on The View, shared on Wednesday a since-deleted X post voicing disdain for Violet’s opposition to the spread of long COVID.
“Every single thing about all of this is why people hate nepo babies so much,” the 40-year-old wrote, deleting the post minutes later. On Thursday, after sharing a new version of the X post she deleted the day prior, McCain pushed back against flak she received for targeting a perceived nepo baby while being a self-proclaimed nepo baby herself.
Lou Rocco/ABC via Getty
“Some journalist are clutching their pearls mad I called Violet Affleck a nepo baby so I’m giving you all a response here instead of answering your emails,” the unofficial Princess of Arizona wrote on the social platform.
“First, it takes one to know one. I’m clearly a nepo baby, check my twitter bio,” she said. “Say whatever you want about me, my parents would have NEVER been okay with me speaking in front of the United Nations at 19 about a health issue I had no background, training or experience in.”
McCain said that “having famous parents is a double edged sword and if you’re going to put yourself out there, you gotta take the heat (as I have always done),” before getting in a few final jabs against Violet.
“Finally – anyone advocating that I mask my kids all day in 2025 I think is insane, and that is my right,” McCain said, referencing Violet’s speech that saw her advocate for protective measures and clean air while wearing an N95 mask. “Have a nice day.”
Entertainment Weekly has reached out to representatives for Violet’s parents for comment.
On Wednesday, McCain received sustained criticism online over her comments about Violet, with many alleging that she, too, is a nepo baby who regularly promoted her ties to her late father while she was on The View.
Violet is currently a freshman at Yale, and, in her UN speech, cited medical professionals as she advocated for public health.
Meghan McCain/X
“We are told by leaders across the board that we are the future,” Violet said in her address, per PEOPLE. “But when it comes to the ongoing pandemic, our present is being stolen right in front of our eyes.”
She added, “as Dr. Akiko Iwasaki says, at this point, the whole population is the control group, and after only five years, long COVID has surpassed asthma as the most common chronic illness in children five years and under.”
Bellocqimages/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images
McCain has long aired her grievances about public personalities, ranging from her issues with Bradley Cooper’s Maestro movie to an alleged experience with Jennifer Lopez while she was still at The View.
Since leaving the show in 2021, the conservative commentator has repeatedly criticized her former colleagues, including in a December 2023 comment, alleging that they’re “crazy old people” who bully her.
