Or perhaps it’s because, last autumn, reports emerged about Mr. Tillerson calling his boss a “moron” in private. “I wanted to either break it or do something, and he felt a little bit differently”.
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“We disagreed on things”, Trump told White House reporters after the news broke.
Addressing the rumor that Tillerson was tipped off about getting fired while he was in Africa, Trevor Noah said on “The Daily Show”, “Imagine if this happened and he wasn’t warned”.
He did not mention Trump – other than to say that he’d spoken by phone to the president Tuesday while Trump was on Air Force One.
The paper also said Tillerson was “restrained” compared to Pompeo, who “is likely to add more foam to the top, leading to uncertainty and a higher risk”.
At the State Department, Tillerson thanked Mattis, career diplomats and the American people, but left out Trump. Hours later, he was sacked too.
“I’m a big boy”, Goldstein told reporters later.
“It’s important that the USA maintains its seat at the table about how to address the threat of climate change, which does require a global response”, the former CEO of oil giant ExxonMobil had said during his confirmation hearings. Tillerson also spoke with White House Chief of Staff John Kelly.
Tillerson is the latest in a long list of senior officials who have either resigned or been fired since Trump took office. I think these were larger issues that had been percolating for some time.
In choosing Pompeo, Trump has opted for one of his close allies.
Murkowski ticked off a list of agenda items that were already in line ahead of her priorities on energy before Trump threw a wrench in the Senate’s plans by firing Tillerson. It was a different thinking. Additionally, Tillerson reportedly held back Trump from striking North Korea, while Pompeo has come off more hawkish.
More consequentially for Canada, it’s hard to imagine him as a counterweight to the protectionists dominating Mr. Trump’s cabinet table.
Rex Tillerson is the 20 important casualty in Trump’s administration who is ousted from his position. “If the White House was a fraternity in an 80s movie, Rex Tillerson was the dean”.
President Trump’s pick for new CIA Director, Gina Haspel, has caused additional controversy, as she has been linked to the torturing of two suspects and destruction of video evidence regarding their interrogation in Thailand.
“He will do a fantastic job!”
Democrats are already gearing up in opposition and plan to make Haspel’s role in the George W. Bush-era Central Intelligence Agency interrogation program a key part of her confirmation, while human rights groups are pressing for the Central Intelligence Agency to declassify her records in the program.
“Pompeo is a strong opponent of the Iran nuclear deal, and rather than moderate the president’s approach, there’s concern that he will reinforce those views”, said Thomas Countryman, an assistant secretary of state when the accord was signed during the Obama administration.
Kono told reporters Wednesday that he “regretted” that Tillerson was sacked as the two had established a trusting relationship.
Two senior state Department officials said that after President Donald Trump accepted North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s invitation for a meeting, he personally asked Pompeo to take the lead in preparing the talks.
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Senator Martin Heinrich, a member of the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence, said Trump’s decision to nominate Haspel to serve as CIA Director is “deeply troubling”.
