Whoopi Goldberg says she wants to be a US ambassador to 'represent our country'

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: Actress, comedian, and longtime co-host of 'The View', Whoopi Goldberg, is opening up about an unexpected new dream - serving the United States abroad as an ambassador. Speaking on The View’s “Behind the Table” podcast ahead of her 70th birthday on Thursday, November 13, the EGOT winner revealed she has quietly held onto the aspiration for years.

“I know this is the craziest thing ever, and it will never happen while The View is going on,” she admitted to producer Brian Teta. “But I still want to represent our country in another country. I've always wanted to be an ambassador.”

Goldberg, beloved for her decades-long Hollywood career and outspoken commentary, said her interest in diplomacy stems from her complex but heartfelt love for America.

 “I think there are terrific things about this country. I know we're not perfect, and there's a lot of stuff we've got to fix,” she said. “There are great things about us and terrible things about us. We fix what we can, and sometimes we fix it really well, and sometimes we don't fix it well enough.”

Whoopi Goldberg says she wants to reshape how other countries view the US

The “Ghost” star shared that she is deeply drawn to the idea of helping rebuild global perceptions of the United States. “Especially as other countries are dealing with us these days and their reactions to us and how we are being seen by them,” she explained. “I want to bring it back to the people of the US, what the people are doing. They don't have any say in it.”

Teta noted that Goldberg is “someone who loves this country and is a patriot,” even if she doesn’t “love what’s going on in the country all the time.” Goldberg agreed, adding that what she cherishes most about America is the freedom to speak openly.

“I love it because this is one of the few countries where you can say, ‘I don't like that,’ and you don’t get hamstrung, you don't get arrested on the streets,” she said. Reflecting on her friendships across the political spectrum, she added, “I've always had friends who are Republicans and I still do, but this idea that we can't disagree without it being life-threatening, that’s not America.”

Whoopi Goldberg says she still misses acting: ‘I am first and foremost an actor’

While Goldberg dreams of diplomacy, she also admitted she misses acting, a confession she made last year on “The View” after taking on the role of Miss Hannigan in Annie. “I haven't done this in a while and it was interesting for me to see how it worked,” she said at the time. “One of the things that people forget is that I am first and foremost, an actor.”

She credited Barbara Walters and Joy Behar for giving her 'The View' spot in 2007 but acknowledged she wants to return to her roots. “I missed it but I also realised that it's been a while since I've done it… The older I'm getting, I wanna get back to that.”

For now, Goldberg seems to be balancing her on-screen legacy with a newfound diplomatic ambition and fans already seem curious about what a “Ambassador Whoopi Goldberg” era might look like.