‘Momentary lapse in judgment’: Chamber of Commerce CEO apologizes for ‘mistake’

The president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce sent a message to staff apologizing for posting a photo to social media that was widely seen as offensive.

In the photo, Suzanne Clark is posing with two white women wearing Native American headdresses.

Ryan Grim, the Washington, DC bureau chief for The Intercept, posted a copy of the photo to Twitter.

He followed up by posting a "note to staff" from Clark.

"I wanted you to hear this from me first," she said, in a message that noted Politico was chasing the story.

"During my vacation, a DJ came to the dance floor and put various types of headwear, including headdresses, of some of the other people in my group. While they were only worn for the seconds it takes to snap and post a photo, it was wrong to don those headdresses, which hold deep meaning for Native Americans," Clark admitted.

"All of this was a mistake, and I am deeply sorry," she said.