Apparently Mike Pompeo is in Kazakhstan saying it’s great to punish journalists for doing their job. Way to represent, Mike!

Secretary of State Mike Pompeo defended the State Department’s decision to deny NPR press credentials for his trip to Europe following his confrontation with reporter Mary Louise Kelly, stating in an interview in Kazakhstan Sunday that it sends “a perfect message about press freedoms” to the world.

What perfect message is that? “You can’t have them”?

When asked by RFE/RL's Kazakh Service what kind of message an NPR reporter's removal from his pool sends to countries with a poor record when it comes to press freedoms, U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo replied, "It is a perfect message about

The Guardian Live on Pompeo’s belated admission that he was on that phone call:

Some more context on Secretary Pompeo’s admission that he took part in the July phone call between Donald Trump and Ukraine president Volodymyr Zelensky.

Pompeo’s involvement in the call (he listened in to the conversation and does not appear to have actively participated) was first reported by the Wall Street Journal last week. Pompeo’s admission, made earlier today on an official trip to the Vatican, confirms this reporting.

Although Pompeo has sought to downplay the relevance of his participation, describing it as part of normal state department business, that explanation only takes you so far.

Aside from the substance of the call, which involved Trump