As someone who unashamedly watches The View every day (yes, every day), and as someone who is decidedly liberal politically, I find Joy Behar and Whoopi Goldberg to be pop culture mouthpieces for my own opinions. To be clear, this is a general statement. For example, I do not agree with Ms. Goldberg’s support of her celebrity friends when they do things that are clearly violations of decency. (See: Mel Gibson or Roman Polanski)

I also enjoy Barbara Walters, who gets crankier and crankier with every season that passes. (“Well, darling, he inherited a very bad situation.”) Although her liberal persuasions are obvious, she does add gravitas to the more serious Hot Topics and reins in Joy if she makes light of a real issue.

I have no comment on Sherri Shepherd.

It may come to a surprise, however, that I also really like Elisabeth Hasselbeck. She is the youngest of the panel, the fittest of the panel, the most modern of the panel, and certainly the most conservative of the panel.

Here’s why Elisabeth earns my respect: She is all alone. All alone on a national stage.

For nearly nine years, Elisabeth has been the lone conservative on The View. Sure, Sherri has some arguably conservative moments, but overall, I see her as the least informed, least convicted co-host. (Although I give her props for standing up to Barbara during the “n word” debate recently, no matter how poorly argued her opinion was. Check this drama out.)

But it’s Elisabeth who gets most of the criticism from the left. And she should get criticism from the left. After all, liberals don’t react well to conservative viewpoints, and vice versa. There’s no denying, though, that Elisabeth is a powerful voice for conservatives, especially conservative women. And she remains a strong voice, despite being outnumbered 4-to-1 at the Hot Topics table.

Yes, she stands alone. She has a comeback, usually snarky or disgusted, to everything Joy has to say. And no matter how much the show’s producers insist to the contrary, there’s no denying the smoldering hatred Joy and Elisabeth have for one another. Their interactions are prime indicators of how the left and the right wings of the nation feel about each other on any given subject.

Joy and Whoopi are loud. Barbara wrenches the conversation away whenever she feels like it. Sherri stares blankly most of the time. But Elisabeth really holds her own. She is interrupted every few seconds, but she makes her point. She never looks intimidated; in fact, she usually looks quite comfortable. No matter how heated the debate is, she makes her case. She makes Conservative America’s case.

Nine years is a long time for someone as conservative as Elisabeth is to put up with someone as liberal as Joy is. If you are that assured of your views, you get my respect. I don’t believe her opinions are blind. They are just as thought-out as any other. So what if she has been a primary figure in nearly every single controversial spat on the show?

Now I want to make it clear that I disagree almost always with Elisabeth. Though her opinions are clear and assertive, I believe her worldview is rather narrow. I find her “argue” voice to be shrill. I think she falls into the controversy trap a little too often. I think she cries too much on the air. I don’t think she’s a particularly good interviewer. And I find her, at times, quite unprofessional.

But I so love it when a controversial guest appears and she digs into them, claws sharpened. I love it when her arguments with Joy get so heated and contemptuous that they have to reassure the audience during the next episode that they don’t - honestly! - hate each other. And she is relatively funny and, from what I can tell, a terrific mother. All around, she’s a decent human being who just wants a voice like everyone else.

And as I’ve said, it’s a powerful voice. As the only blatantly conservative panelist, she decides on her own what conservatives should think and do. (She’s a big supporter of Romney. I wonder who will end up being the nominee…) She sits there, day after day, just taking it. Just being refuted time after time. Often being belittled and condescended to and dismissed with the wave of Barbara’s hand.

Is she too ignorant to see that she doesn’t belong? Or is she just so strong that she doesn’t care? Is she really so willing to put herself out there, in front of millions of viewers, and tell everyone what she thinks? Seems that way to me. In fact, it seems as if she isn’t going anywhere anytime soon. She is too captivating to leave the show.

No, I don’t agree with Elisabeth Hasselbeck on much of anything. And I think there is misplaced anger at and judgment of her. (See: At least she knew the world is round.) I really do like her. I would like to meet her and talk to her and laugh with her. We’d be great friends.

So in defense of Elisabeth Hasselbeck, I would like to give her a lot of credit for her role in pop culture politics. She has the look, the demeanor, the assertiveness, the likability that anyone - conservative or liberal - would love to have in their arsenal. I’ve really come to appreciate Ms. Hasselbeck and her insistence on not being silenced. I honestly do like her a lot.

And there’s no denying The View would be a vastly different program - and would have a vastly different message - without Elisabeth Hasselbeck.