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MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell Erases Black Experience

Pompeo's photo clearly showed retired African-American admiral Cecil D. Haney

December 16, 2019

MSNBC's Andrea Mitchell attacked Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Monday for tweeting a picture of himself alongside his "all white and all male" Foreign Policy Advisory Council, ignoring a retired African-American admiral clearly pictured in the group.

"For those of you listening on XM radio and can't see the picture, it is a very impressive-looking group of white gentlemen," Mitchell said of the photo showing Pompeo meeting with members of the Foreign Policy Advisory Board. Clearly pictured in the photo with Pompeo was retired admiral Cecil D. Haney, the former commander of U.S. Strategic Command and the second ever African-American four-star admiral.

"Can I say that we have had three women serving as secretaries of state in both political parties, we have had innumerable women ambassadors and other foreign policy experts throughout the government and the private sector. How do we have a foreign policy advisory board at the State Department in this day and age that is all white and all male?" Mitchell asked.

Washington Post reporter Ashley Parker echoed Mitchell's criticism, saying the photograph contained "no people of color. This is a White House that has struggled to have diversity represented in the upper echelons on the administration, in the cabinet, in senior advisors."

MSNBC did not respond to a request for comment asking whether Mitchell would offer an on-air correction.