A hot-mic moment landed Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot in hot water when she was heard calling a Fraternal Order of Police official a “clown.”

The official, Patrick Murray, was speaking during the prelude to a city council meeting Wednesday when the mayor was picked up by a live microphone uttering “this FOP clown,” the Chicago Sun-Times reported.

The union’s second vice president was there to defend four cops fired by the Police Board for covering up for Jason Van Dyke, the officer convicted of second-degree murder for shooting Laquan McDonald, 17.

At one point, Lightfoot turned to corporation counsel Mark Flessner and said, “Back again. This is this FOP clown,” which was picked up on the meeting’s livestream.

“It was not appropriate for me to say that out loud,” the mayor said after the meeting.

When asked if she planned to apologize to Murray or to the union, with which she needs to negotiate a new contract, Lightfoot waffled.

“I think I just did. I think I said I shouldn’t have said that out loud,” she said.

Was she sorry she said it or was she sorry her remark got picked up on a hot mic?

“I’m sorry that I said it out loud,” she said.

The FOP slammed the mayor on the union’s Facebook page.

“Mayor Lightfoot’s contemptuous remark is a misguided and dangerous thing to say to a 30-year veteran police officer and FOP representative, particularly at a time when the city is facing such chronic violent crime,” the union said.

“It is also telling that the mayor would not even apologize. The red noses, however, belong on the members of the Chicago Police Board, her former agency, for their despicable decision to fire three police officers and a sergeant last week for no good reason whatsoever.”