Secretary of State Mike Pompeo really shit the bed in the worst way recently when he was caught on recording having a complete and total meltdown on NPR’s All Things Considered co-host Mary Louise Kelly that no doubt made daddy Trump beam with pride.
In the interview, Pompeo cursed heavily at the reporter, questioned her intelligence, forced her to point out Ukraine on an unmarked map he just happened to have handy, and threatened that “people will hear about this.”
In the aftermath of the recording’s release, Pompeo released a statement in which he did not apologize or express even an ounce of remorse for the way he treated the professional but rather alleged that Kelly lied to him repeatedly, which was his excuse for behaving in the manner that he did. He whined that the interview wasn’t supposed to be recorded in the first place, and then took to disparaging the media as a whole in true Trump administration fashion.
As if all that hoopla wasn’t bad enough on its own, it now appears that Pompeo’s State Department has taken to retaliating against National Public Radio (NPR) by kicking their reporters off the Secretary of State’s jet.
Stay up-to-date with the latest news!
Subscribe and start recieving our daily emails.
Per a report from PBS Newshour’s Nick Schifrin, Michele Kelemen, diplomatic correspondent for NPR, was booted off of Pompeo’s jet by the State Department.
Schifrin reports, “State Department removes NPR’s Michele Kelemen from Sec. Pompeo plane–where she was scheduled for a pool radio rotation–during upcoming trip to London, Kiev.”
State Department removes @NPR‘s @michelekelemen from @SecPompeo plane–where she was scheduled for a pool radio rotation–during upcoming trip to London, Kiev. Comes after @SecPompeo accused media of being “unhinged” after @NPRKelly interview and subsequent back and forth.
— Nick Schifrin (@nickschifrin) January 27, 2020
He goes on to report in an additional tweet that AFP State Department correspondent Shaun Tandon criticized the blatantly revengeful move on behalf of the State Department Correspondent’s Association.
“We can only conclude State retaliating against NPR as result of this exchange. State press corps has long tradition of accompanying secretaries on travel, we find it unacceptable to punish individual member of our association,” Schifrin alleges Tandon stated.
State Dept Correspondents Association’s @shauntandon:”We can only conclude State retaliating against @NPR as result of this exchange..State press corps has long tradition of accompanying secretaries on travel,we find it unacceptable to punish individual member of our association”
— Nick Schifrin (@nickschifrin) January 27, 2020
Additional reporting follows:
State dept colleagues are dismayed, outraged by @SecPompeo decision to kick esteemed @NPR veteran diplomatic correspondent @MicheleKelemen off his plane for this week’s trip to Ukraine in apparent retaliation for her colleague standing up to bullying. #FirstAmendment
— Andrea Mitchell (@mitchellreports) January 27, 2020
The State Department removed NPR reporter Michele Kelemen from the press pool on @SecPompeo trip this week to Europe and Central Asia following his dustup w @NPRKelly. Read statement by @shauntandon, State Department Correspondents’ Association president: pic.twitter.com/XksXaInNCJ
— Lara Jakes (@jakesNYT) January 27, 2020
Honestly, this was a shit move, even for the likes of Mike Pompeo.
Featured image via Political Tribune gallery
Like what you see here? Join the discussion on Facebook over at Americans For Sanity!
