Ladies and Gentlemen, the 70th Secretary of State, whose predecessors include John Quincy Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Dean Acheson,  and George C. Marshall, glaringly shows how small his shoes are for this job.  He may think he got swagger — he’s the least swaggerific person we could think of — but this secretary of state somehow also doesn’t think there’s anything wrong with asking a prospective foreign recipient of U.S. military aid to investigate a political opponent.  Close your eyes and imagine if this were a a president from a party you did not vote for making the same request, and see if you think this is okay. 

These reporters were doing their jobs, asking important questions of the day, but  instead of answering them, as Mr. Pompeo should — being a “public servant’ and all — he insulted them as being somehow working for the DNC? C’mon, that’s just lazy. He could not even get a little more creative with his insults? 

Were they too shy to call this part of the State Department’s “freethepress campaign? That is, he’s free to slam the press, if he doesn’t like the question? 

And then he said this to PBS’s Judy Woodruff:

Everyone keeps suggesting that somehow there was undue pressure.  I assure you countries all around the world every day call me to try and get America to behave in the way that’s in the best interests of their country.  They try to apply pressure to me.  And we work on it.  We work on it diplomatically to achieve good outcomes for the American people.  And the results – the results that President Trump has achieved with respect to our relationship with Ukraine I think will stand on their own as a hallmark of success of the State Department and what this administration has done.

“A hallmark of success,” no doubt, just as as soon as Ukraine President Zelensky and President Putin “get together” and “solve” their “problem” which by the way, is the annexation of Crimea by the Russian Federation. If some country were to invade, say Alaska, should we get together and solve that problem with the invading forces? No?

When asked if he has decided that there will be cooperation with the House impeachment, his response was a familiar Pompeo quip, there’s always “oh goodness” and he or somebody is always clear: “Oh, goodness, I’ve made clear.  I think the White House has made very clear.  We will ensure that we do everything we’re required to do by the law and the Constitution.  Every time.”

It’s so clear we could see though the mud, every day and twice on Sunday like old Vaudeville shows.

Also see the transcript of Secretary Michael R. Pompeo With Nancy Amons of WSMV-TV or click below for the link to the uncut 7-min interview which includes the secstate smileon/smileoff display. This is how all interviews with the secretary of state ought to be conducted.

Our website has the full News4 one-on-one with Secretary of State Mike Pompeo. Follow the link in the story

(Via WSMV) https://t.co/Uf1CBkdz1o

— wsmv Nancy Amons (@WSMVNancyAmons) October 12, 2019

WATCH: Sec. of State Pompeo reacts to @JudyWoodruff's question centered on the absence of proof that Vice President Joe Biden did anything corrupt in his dealings with Ukraine. pic.twitter.com/gfMA80BHAm

— PBS NewsHour (@NewsHour) October 9, 2019

Cabinet secretaries in every administration usually enjoy or tolerate these local TV interviews because they assume they’ll be tossed puffball questions compared to network correspondents. Doesn’t always work out like that as @SecPompeo today realized in #Tennessee. https://t.co/9dx4WYVTQo

— Steve Herman (@W7VOA) October 11, 2019

Setting aside the knock at a reporter doing her job—and one shouldn’t—Pompeo’s answer is ironic.

Pompeo claims he was too busy being tough on Iran to remember if he met in Warsaw with Giuliani, whose client executed the biggest money laundering scheme to Iran in US history. https://t.co/FJrSbIlaAw

— Adam Klasfeld (@KlasfeldReports) October 13, 2019