Secretary of State Mike Pompeo on Thursday downplayed a controversial claim by Rudy Giuliani that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un “got on his hands and knees and begged” for a meeting with President Trump after he canceled their summit last month.
“Rudy doesn’t speak for the administration when it comes to this negotiation and this set of issues,” Pompeo said in a briefing with reporters on North Korea.
Giuliani, who recently joined Trump’s outside legal team, made the remark during a conference in Tel Aviv earlier this week.
“Well, Kim Jong Un got back on his hands and knees and begged for it, which is exactly the position you want to put him in,” the former New York City mayor had said.
Some national security analysts and critics of the administration seized on Giuliani’s comment, claiming his reckless rhetoric could derail talks with North Korea since the Kim regime is notoriously sensitive to criticism of its leader.
But Pompeo suggested the comments were simply made “in jest,” while clarifying that Giuliani is not a mouthpiece for the White House on nuclear policy.
“I took it him as being in a small room and not being serious about the comments,” he said.
Giuliani has drawn scrutiny for several comments he’s made during television and other public appearances since becoming an outside legal adviser to the president.
As recently as Wednesday evening, he came under fire for mocking Stormy Daniels’ looks and suggesting she lacks credibility because of her profession as a porn star.
