The View explains why Donald Trump is so worried about a Don Jr's subpoena

"The View" panelists speculated that President Donald Trump is worried his son will be forced to rat him out if he obeys a subpoena to testify before the Senate Intelligence Committee.

Host Whoopi Goldberg usually takes off Friday, and co-host Meghan McCain called in sick, so CNN political commentator Tara Setmayer joined the panel to discuss the president's defense of his son.

"'My son, my son' he kept saying, as if he's a real father," joked fill-in host Joy Behar. "It was so touching."

Setmayer wasn't so sure, saying Trump's praise for Donald Trump Jr. sounded a lot like his patter on "The Apprentice."

"He talks about his employees that way -- 'he was a very good person' -- he usually says those things before they get the ax," Setmayer said. "Right? I guess he stuck with Donald Trump Jr. the part about him being totally exonerated is not completely true. The funny thing about it is, if you read the Mueller report, it says that Donald Trump Jr. was too stupid to conspire with the Russians."

Behar said the president seems awfully worried about what his son might say about him while under oath.

"Isn't the point that he would go to, take the subpoena, acknowledge the subpoena and say, 'Daddy told me to do it,'" Behar said. "Isn't that what they're scared of?"

Abby Huntsman, who begins maternity leave next week, said congressional investigators would be highly interested in what the president knew about his son's business dealings in Russia and his meeting with a Russian attorney

"That's still the question mark of what Donald Trump knew," Huntsman said. "I think he (already) testified for, like, 11 hours. It is interesting that it's Sen. (Richard) Burr working on this. He's a well-respected Republican being criticized by Republicans for (issuing the subpoena). We still don't know why he is."

Co-host Sunny Hostin, a former federal prosecutor, said the evidence against Trump Jr. was already fairly damning.

"There's sources saying he's going to plead the Fifth (Amendment)," Hostin said. "In my experience as a prosecutor, when they plead the Fifth they're as guilty as all-get-out. When you ignore my subpoena, a federal marshal shows up and you leave (in handcuffs)."