Brzezinski: I Shouldn't Have Called Sec. of State Pompeo 'Butt Boy'

Morning Joe co-host Mika Brzezinski stumbled on Wednesday when she used a casually homophobic expression to describe secretary of State Mike Pompeo.

In discussing Pompeo's soft-pedaling towards the Saudi Crown Prince's role in the murder of American journalist Jamal Khashoggi, Brzezinski insinuated the nation's top diplomat was the bottom to the prince's top.

"I understand that Donald Trump doesn't care ... But why doesn't Mike Pompeo care right now?" Brzezinski asked her co-host/partner Joe Scarborough. "Are the pathetic deflections that we just heard when he appeared on 'Fox & Friends,' is that a patriot speaking, or a wannabe dictator's butt boy? I'm dead serious. I'm asking, are these the words of a patriot?"

As The Hill points out, MSNBC tried to bleep out her verbiage but did not get it in time; "butt boy" is clearly audible.

Straight people denigrating others by insinuating they're gay is a common, though lazy and homophobic, practice. Twitter users explained to Brzezinski why her words were so offensive.

Brzezinski apologized for her phrasing, including to a senator who appeared on Morning Joe during the "butt boy" comment.