Mika Brzezinski, co-host of Morning Joe, has swiftly apologized for remarks she made on her MSNBC program directed at the secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, that were widely criticized as homophobic.

Brzezinski was commenting on an interview Pompeo had given to Fox & Friends in which he said the CIA’s conclusion that Saudi Arabia’s crown prince, Mohammed bin Salman, had ordered the murder of dissident journalist Jamal Khashoggi were inaccurate.

“Why doesn’t Mike Pompeo care right now?” she asked. “Are the pathetic deflections that we just heard when he appeared on Fox and Friends … is that a patriot speaking, or a wannabe dictator’s butt boy?” she asked.

The network seemingly attempted to bleep out her comment, often used as a derogatory term for homosexual men, but was unsuccessful in doing so.

The comments were derided on social media from both the left and the right.

.@morningmika just asked if Mike Pompeo is a “wannabe dictator’s butt boy,” as homophobic a term as I’ve heard on national morning television. @MSNBC tried and failed to censor it, and did not transcribe her remark in the closed captioning. #journalism pic.twitter.com/3zK7H8evjh — G.E. Anderson (@g_e_anderson) December 12, 2018

“So sad that Mika Brzezinski’s work for women’s advocacy has been sullied by her awful, homophobic slur,” wrote one critic on Twitter. “The #LGBTQ community deserves the same advocacy, respect & empowerment as any disenfranchised gender, minority or group. This hate speech has hurt women’s & #LGBTQ causes.”

“I was with you, @morningmika, right up to the ‘butt boy’ comment,” added another. “Try ‘toadie’ or ‘lackey’ or ‘stool pigeon’ or ‘ass kisser,’ or ‘traitor,’ but maybe don’t equate homosexuality with Mike Pompeo carrying water for the murderous regime in Saudi Arabia.”

“This is disgusting!,” tweeted Donald Trump Jr. “How can @KevinHart4real essentially be forced to lose his Oscar’s gig for comments he made years ago as a comedian, but Mika can make a seriously homophobic slur on a major news station, have the network try to cover it up & its not an issue? Give me a break!”

Brzezinski quickly admitted fault.

“Totally agree with you – SUPER BAD choice of words,” she wrote. “I should have said ‘water boy’… like for football teams or something like that..apologize to @SenatorDurbin too! SO SORRY!”

Someone at SNL has got to stand up and say it's not funny to suggest Trump and Putin are lovers. It's stupid and homophobic and I can't find the joke. And for those who think it's hilarious, you did it, you enjoyed it. Let's get it together, guys. https://t.co/6NfGzqcSmo — John Levenstein (@johnlevenstein) December 2, 2018

The controversy echoes the reaction to a recurring joke on NBC’s Saturday Night Live in which the relationship between the Saudi crown prince, Vladimir Putin and Donald Trump was framed as a romantic one that took on a homoerotic context. It also follows the recent announcement that comedian Kevin Hart would no longer be hosting the Academy Awards after past homophobic jokes of his own were uncovered.