NO. 150

WASHINGTON, DC — The American Hellenic Institute (AHI) corrected the record with MSNBC when the network’s commentator, former U.S. Senator Claire McCaskill, erroneously stated on the November 23 broadcast of “Morning Joe” that “Greece was sliding into authoritarianism” and that Greece has “drifted under Trump.”

 An AHI member brought the false statements to the attention of AHI President Nick Larigakis, who immediately reached out to MSNBC to request that Senator McCaskill either recant or clarify her statement.

 “These are incorrect and factually false statements,” Larigakis wrote. “Greece is a democratic partner of the United States, and our relationship, according to U.S. government officials, is at an ‘all time-high.’ I hope that the Senator mis-spoke and was instead referring to Turkey, which has devolved into an authoritarian dictatorship during the past few years.”

Senator McCaskill did issue a November 23 tweet correcting her statement and apologizing to Greece and “all our Greek friends.”

Senator McCaskill posted the following statement on Twitter: “My apologies to Greece and all our Greek friends. In discussing the Truman Doctrine this am with @JoeNBC, I misspoke and referred to Greece when I meant Turkey. Turkey is the nation that, while a NATO member, has drifted toward authoritarianism during the Trump era.”

“We thank former Senator Claire McCaskill and the MSNBC media relations department for acknowledging the false statements made and for quickly correcting the record to reflect that Turkey has become more authoritarian and not Greece,” Larigakis said.