Move over, Sean Spicer. You can add Secretary of State Rex Tillerson to the growing list of appointees who have reached their limit with Donald Trump and are ready to ditch him like a bad habit.
Politics
According to a startling report from Newsweek, Secretary Tillerson has grown so frustrated with Trump and his antics that many in the West Wing believe there may soon be a “Rexit.”
The issue with Tillerson involves the recent berating of Attorney General Jeff Sessions, whom Trump has very publicly raked over the coals. “The Donald” said he would never have hired Sessions if he’d known the lawman would refuse to give him a free pass recuse himself from the Russia probe. Trump then took to Twitter on Monday to once again attack Sessions, calling him “beleaguered” and questioning why Sessions was allowing an investigation of him instead of Hillary Clinton.
Oh, boo-hoo!
Tillerson was livid at Trump’s juvenile public spat against a fellow cabinet member and called his behavior “unprofessional.” He reportedly told confidants that he might have made a mistake in accepting to work for Donald Trump and may soon be calling it quits.
Tillerson’s dismay with “The Donald” is nothing new and has actually been brewing for weeks.
The secretary of state had a minor dust up with Trump in March over attempts to cut $10 billion from the State Department’s $47 billion in funding. However, that was nothing compared to the near “knock-down-drag-out” White House fight that soon followed.
During a meeting last month that included first son-in-law Jared Kushner, Tillerson engaged in a heated exchange with the director of presidential personnel, Johnny DeStefano, who (at Trump’s direction) was attempting to micromanage his staff selections. The West Wing flare-up came after Trump forbade Tillerson to hire Elliott Abrams as his second in command, simply because Abrams had been critical of Trump during the 2016 campaign (Or, in other words: “He made fun of me, so now he can’t play).
Tillerson had previously made it clear and reached an agreement that The White House would not “have any role in staffing.” However, that gentleman’s agreement was quickly squashed.
There’s more.
Politics
Earlier this year, Tillerson and other Cabinet members were left doing damage control after Trump launched a surprise ban on foreign travel to the US from 6 predominately Muslim nations without at least consulting cabinet members beforehand.
Late last month, Trump failed to coordinate with the State Department in issuing a warning to Syria regarding their use of chemical weapons. Traditionally, such warnings are either issued by or coordinated with the State Department. However, Donald Trump ignored his foreign policy guy and disrespectfully bypassed him.
Recently, Trump stepped on Tillerson’s toes by publicly contradicting and overruling his secretary of state’s statements regarding the possibility of the US mediating a dispute between Qatar and Saudi Arabia.
Additionally, although Tillerson is America’s top diplomat, Trump has tapped his young and inexperienced son-in-law, Jared Kushner, to take the lead on complex foreign policy procedures that should rightfully fall under the jurisdiction of the secretary of state.
Prior to last week, Tillerson had confided that he would stay on at the State Department at least through the end of the year. However, the events of late predict that resolve has since stalled. Tillerson is clearly frustrated that Trump constantly undercuts him and has come to the conclusion that things won’t change anytime soon. Don’t be surprised if his days in the Trump administration are numbered.
In case you’re keeping score:
- Trump ran FBI Director James Comey off the job.
- Trump’s long-time legal counsel abruptly quit.
- Trump is actively trying to force Attorney General Jeff Sessions to leave.
- Trump ran press secretary Sean Spicer out of The White House.
- Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is now fed up with Trump and ready to resign.
Hard to believe it’s only been 6 months since the Trump inauguration!
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I am reminded that – in March of this year, Tillerson granted an interview to the Independent Journal Review during his trip to East Asia. And during that interview he told the IJR “I didn’t want this job. I didn’t seek this job,”
The Hill: “Tillerson: ‘I didn’t want this job’
When asked why he agreed to take on the position of secretary of State, Tillerson said his wife “told me I’m supposed to do this.” “I told you God’s not through with you,” he said his wife told him. The former Exxon Mobil Corp. CEO added: “I was supposed to retire in March, this month. I was going to go to the ranch to be with my grandkids.”
Tillerson said he serves at the “pleasure of the president.”
“My wife convinced me,” he said. “She was right. I’m supposed to do this.”