With the rumor mill buzzing that a discontent Elisabeth Hasselbeck may vacate her cushiony seat on The View for the cool, hard Eames chair of Fox News, it's up to den mother Barbara Walters to restore order on the set of her chat show. True to form, Walters has eschewed hugging it out in favor of a more clinical approach; according to the Chicago Sun-Times, she's had to schedule a staff meeting to deal with the increasingly hot-under-the-collar Hasselbeck:

BIG RIFT ON 'THE VIEW': A longtime staff member on ''The View'' chatfest says, ''It's not as bad as during the Rosie [O'Donnell] era,'' but the presidential election has GOP-er Elisabeth Hasselbeck ''really upset'' with her liberal co-hosts Whoopi Goldberg and Joy Behar. I understand ''View'' creator Barbara Walters has called a ''cooling off'' meeting to keep a lid on things.

Might Walters be turning Whoopi Goldberg into a frilly fashion plate to fill the void that would be left by a departing Hasselbeck? One thing's for sure, Elisabeth: no one tangles with a master of passive-agressive manipulation like Barbara Walters and walks away unscathed. Sure, her icy smile and offers of chamomile tea might seem appealing, but we'd taste test that tea on a lowly PA first if we were you.