Official: Tillerson 'not really speaking' for Trump anymore

[riversedge]

Source: the hill


By John Bowden - 12/14/17 10:20 PM EST

A White House official sharply rebuked Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Thursday, telling The Washington Post that President Trump's Cabinet member no longer speaks for the administration.

“I think our allies know at this point he’s not really speaking for the administration,” the official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, told the newspaper. The same person described Tillerson as "irrelevant" due to the influence of other diplomats and Cabinet officials.
.................................



White House deputy press secretary Raj Shah told the Post for its report that Trump “is very pleased with his entire national security team, which includes Secretary Tillerson.”

State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert told the newspaper that Tillerson “enjoys a strong relationship with the president. Most importantly, they share a commitment to the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula, the security of our homeland and the protection of our allies.”...............

Read more: http://thehill.com/homenews/administration/365048-official-tillerson-not-really-speaking-for-white-house-anymore

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Good god!! Our State Dept is is complete disarray!

[TeamPooka]

1. The Secretary of State of the United States of America is now powerless and weak

to the rest of the world.
And the next one of Trump's won't be taken seriously either now.

[riversedge]

13. The so important Diplomacy arm of the State Dept is almost gone--what is left seems to

be left in Tillerson's command. damn

[Hortensis]

17. Damn.

Unbelievable.

[pangaia]

19. No it is not. Look what Stalin did to his high-ranking military officers

and government officials, artists, journalists, scientists.....

He ALMOST got Shostakovich !! But not quite...

[Hortensis]

20. Yes. I meant that we've come to this in America.

[pangaia]

22. yeah, I know.... amazing.... or not...

It's been coming for a long, long time... and it will get worse...

[Hortensis]

34. About 40-50 years. But they're SHOWING themselves now.

This is a very dangerous point for them, not just for us.

[RDANGELO]

2. Something else for Mueller to investigate.

Why hasn't he been fired. Does it have to do with his Russia connections, or nobody else wants the job.

[FakeNoose]

23. At least one person wants Tillerson's job

...Nicky Haley. But she's not getting it.
Nah na-na-na naaahh!

[vlyons]

3. Why hasn't Tillerson quit?

Trump can't stand for anyone else to get more press, more respect, more influence. more power, more accomplishments than him. Such a childish envious person.

[Lucky Luciano]

7. I think he needs to be there for a year to get a tax benefit from joining the government.

I may be wrong though.

[unblock]

27. exactly. a number of people will resign january 20 or january 21.

something to do with profits on assets sold to avoid conflicts of interest due to taking a government position.

[Hortensis]

18. Maybe he hasn't achieved what he came for.

Really don't know what that is, but Exxon's and Russia's huge oil deal is still a no-go until the sanctions are lifted. We know that's not done.

[no_hypocrisy]

4. A rogue Department of State is to be of concern.

It's telling whether it's independent for the safety and security of this country because it's leader can lead us into war for trivial reasons (or no reason at all) or the Department is making its own policy no matter who's in power.

[muriel_volestrangler]

9. That depends on whether you see the "rogues" as State, or the anonymous White House officials

If, for instance, it's Stephen Miller and allies, then they're the ones who are "rogue", according to international standards (eg it was Miller who kept altering Trump's speeches to make them anti-NATO). Since the anonymous officials make sure to include some priase of Miller in the WP article:

Tillerson’s State Department continues to clash with the White House over personnel — picks are often scuttled or delayed, officials say — and Trump would sometimes react with exasperation when the secretary’s name is brought up, other officials said. One senior official said Trump will sometimes commend senior policy aide Stephen Miller for the time he clashed with Tillerson, or will mention disagreements Tillerson has had with other aides — and not take Tillerson’s side.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/trump-allies-say-tillerson-has-not-learned-his-lesson-and-cannot-continue-in-job-for-long/2017/12/14/50a1a912-e0e2-11e7-bbd0-9dfb2e37492a_story.html?utm_term=.c8bdc44292f2

I suspect it is them, rather than, say, McMaster or Kelly.

[Achilleaze]

5. Pooty Poot is the go-to guy for republican policy

freaking republican TreasonWeasels

[gademocrat7]

6. Just horrible.

The State Department has been decimated. This is intolerable. Chump and his band of unqualified henchmen are reeking havoc on our government.

[dhol82]

25. Really sorry but I have had a glass of bourbon and the grammar Nazi has arisen.

The correct word is ‘wreaking’ not reeking.
Reeking refers to a noisome smell - which actually is an excellent word for this situation but, I do not think that was your intention.

[Yonnie3]

30. Give me more than a few bourbons and ...

I will be reeking of bourbon as the bourbon is wreaking havoc with my grammar.

[dhol82]

31. Well done!

Well done, I say. I tip my hat to you.

[spicysista]

8. This is terrible!

I'd hope that cooler heads would prevail. I'm getting a slow but steady creeping feeling of dread marching toward my heart. I hope Tillerson doesn't quit......

[Eyeball_Kid]

11. Tillerson was hired to execute the lifting of sanctions.

Then Congress stepped in and Tillerson's mission became impossible to finish. Now he's a useless cog in the wheel who knows nothing beyond oil and gas contracts.

[Rene]

10. Isn't Miller the source of a LOT of confusion and lousy messaging/poor communication.

[SWBTATTReg]

12. so this is tRUMPs' so called super business expertise, eh?

really impressive (yawn)

[mpcamb]

14. The language, "is very pleased with", enjoys a strong relationship", "share a commitment" is

Straight out of the old PRAVDA playbook for somebody who's going to get their ass kicked. If you were from the old East Block countries you'd know how to cut away the obvious lies and get the truth between the lines the Russian journalists tried to slip in . White House trumpites aren't sly enough for that, so there stuck mouthing moronic party line gibberish like Huckster Sanders.

Anyway, Tillerson's days are numbered. Sad to think about if you're up to your nostrils in EXXON stock. Otherwise good riddance to bad trash

[Akoto]

15. This administration needs a fleet of busses, at the rate they're throwing people under 'em. n/t

[Honeycombe8]

16. Wow. They are urging Tillerson to quit. He's powerless. He can't DO anything.

Payback for the "moron" statement?

OTOH, Tillerson always said he'd stay til the end of the year. It's just about here, anyway.

Wow. It's just shameful how Trump treats his cabinet and staffers. I've never seen anything like it.

When will they learn? Look at all Tillerson gave up to be Sec of State. Why did he want to do it? Go figure.

[green917]

39. He did it to line his own pockets

Tillerson had one job as secretary of state... to expedite the lifting of sanctions against Russia (Which is the reason for all of the collusion between Russia and the trump administration). Had he been able to accomplish that feat, his former company (of which he is still a major stock holder) would have been able to ink a major deal with Russia's oil industry that would have made Exxon billions (thereby making tillerson's stock go up precipitously).

[Honeycombe8]

40. Ahhhh. Like Cheney did with the Halliburton no-bid contract for the Iraq War.

It's raining dollars for these old fat rich men.

[Eugene]

21. Rex Tillerson scales back offer of opening dialogue with North Korea

Source: The Guardian

Rex Tillerson scales back offer of opening dialogue with North Korea

The secretary of state omitted his line from earlier in the week on US openness to talks ‘without pre-conditions’ following a rebuke from the White House

Julian Borger in Washington
Friday 15 December 2017 19.52 GMT

Rex Tillerson has said that the US was keeping channels of communication open with North Korea but said Pyongyang would have to “earn its way back to the table” with a “sustained cessation of threatening behaviour”.

In his remarks at a ministerial meeting of the UN security council, the US secretary of state appeared to restate an offer of a dialogue following a pause in nuclear and missile testing that he made on Tuesday, but cast it in tougher language following a rebuke from the White House. Tillerson omitted a line restating US openness to talks “without pre-conditions” that had been in a text of his speech circulated earlier by the state department.

“As I said earlier this week, a sustained cessation of North Korea’s threatening behavior must occur before talks can begin. North Korea must earn its way back to the table,” Tillerson said. “The pressure campaign must, and will, continue until denuclearization is achieved. We will, in the meantime, keep our channels of communication open.”

Speaking later at the security council meeting, the North Korean envoy Ja Song-nam ignored the US secretary of state’s call for talks, claiming that the US was “terrified by the incredible might of our Republic that has successfully achieved the great historic cause of completing the state nuclear force”

-snip-

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2017/dec/15/rex-tillerson-scales-back-offer-of-opening-dialogue-with-north-korea

[TomSlick]

24. I'm confused again.

Surely, Tillerson has a well-developed sense of his own worth. Why in the world does he not resign?

There is no way in this world that I would let myself be publicly be embarrassed like this. It can't be the tax issue referenced above, the guy has enough money to burn a wet mule. I don't get it.

[dhol82]

26. There has to be some financial reward for his sticking it out for a full year

Not really sure why he needs it since he is already worth a gazillion dollars.

[TomSlick]

28. Maybe it's only because I don't have any money but

if I had the kind of money Tillerson has, I would walk into the Oval Office with a middle finger extended - call a press conference to be conducted with the finger still extended - and keep it extended until everyone willing to take a picture had done so (days if necessary).

[dhol82]

29. True. I also.

That’s why I have a problem with him not doing the same.
What is up with this particular ass hat?

[mr_lebowski]

33. Knows he's knee deep in Russia-gate, and utterly compromised, i.e. beyond 'plea-dealing', perhaps?

So Trump, the psychopath he is ... is enjoying toying with him, because despite his vast wealth, he's effectively powerless in this scenario?

We have a very, very sick and dysfunctional situation going on here, that much is obvious ... how byzantine and Goldberg-esque it really is ... is the only real question.

[HurricaneWarning]

38. I think he gets an enormous tax break

if he sticks it out for a while. That's all his cabinet is interested in.

[democratisphere]

32. drumpf hired Tillerson, then did everything possible to undermine him

and the State Department; aided and abetted by Kushner. Typical psychopath behavior.

[riversedge]

35. Tillerson thinks he has control over Trump but he can not control a psychopath!

[dalton99a]

36. Tillerson will be gone next month

[NastyRiffraff]

37. This is very dangerous

I have zero respect for Tillerson, but undermining ANY American Secretary of State tells the world that our word is worthless. The Sec of State speaks for the country abroad; the Trump administration is telling our allies and enemies that America stands for nothing.

[Shoonra]

41. Simple fact: Very few are speaking FOR Trump now

Since a great deal of what Trump says is absurd, a great many of the more sentient people in the Executive Branch realize that they look and sound silly, crazy or even criminal if they parrot the President's words, so you will see them try to rephrase, even entirely recast, the President's expressions into something less conspicuously pathological. Sometimes they are motivated to do this for the sake of the country, often they are motivated for the sake of their own reputation and self-esteem.