Exxon’s Rex Tillerson Is Top Candidate for Secretary of State[W:496]

mbig · Dec 9, 2016

I imagine this is why Giuliani 'withdrew' his name. He was not even in the top tier of finalists IMO, and was given a few days of grace due to his loyalty.
A pretty startling choice if true.
Not that he isn't up to it, but it's a diplomat job for a Inside Biz/Corporate guy.
But for Trump's purpose - and with his buddy Put!n, and other world leaders in mind - makes sense.
Being CEO of a giant Int'l co, he already knows several world leaders and has dealt with them.

Exxon’s Rex Tillerson Is Top Candidate for Secretary of State
CEO with ties to Russia’s Vladimir Putin would bring an executive’s experience to the diplomatic role, a transition official said
By PETER NICHOLAS and BRADLEY OLSON
Updated Dec. 9, 2016 6:22 p.m. ET
Exxon's Rex Tillerson Is Top Candidate for Secretary of State - WSJ

Exxon Mobil Corp. Chief Executive Rex Tillerson has emerged as the leading candidate to become President-elect Donald Trump’s pick for secretary of state, according to two transition officials, marking the latest twist in a multiweek search for a top diplomat.

Mr. Tillerson moved ahead of other candidates, including 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney, who have had multiple conversations with Mr. Trump about the job. Mr. Tillerson is viewed by some of Mr. Trump’s advisers as a mold-breaking pick who would bring an executive’s experience to the diplomatic role, said a person involved in the process.

Messrs. Trump and Tillerson met on Tuesday and are expected to speak again over the weekend, the person said. Mr. Trump has said he would like to make a formal announcement about his State Department pick next week.

Mr. Trump said in a statement on Friday that former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani had taken himself out of the running for the diplomatic job and other administration posts late last month.
[......]
An Exxon spokesman declined to comment.

Mr. Trump hasn’t made a final decision on whom he wants as his top diplomat. Other candidates who remain in the running, apart from Mr. Romney, are former Central Intelligence Agency director David Petraeus and former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations John Bolton, people familiar with the matter said.

If Mr. Trump selects Mr. Tillerson, it would add a seasoned business executive to a team that already includes three retired generals. As Exxon’s CEO since 2006, Mr. Tillerson, 64 years old, could leverage existing relationships with numerous world leaders.
[......]

reinoe · Dec 9, 2016

Re: Exxon’s Rex Tillerson Is Top Candidate for Secretary of State

mbig said:
I imagine this is why Giuliani 'withdrew' his name. He was not even in the top tier of finalists IMO, and was given a few days of grace due to his loyalty.
A pretty startling choice if true.
Not that he isn't up to it, but it's a diplomat job for a Inside Biz/Corporate guy.
But for Trump's purpose - and with his buddy Put!n, and other world leaders in mind - makes sense.
Being CEO of a giant Int'l co, he already knows several world leaders and has dealt with them.

Exxon’s Rex Tillerson Is Top Candidate for Secretary of State
CEO with ties to Russia’s Vladimir Putin would bring an executive’s experience to the diplomatic role, a transition official said
By PETER NICHOLAS and BRADLEY OLSON
Updated Dec. 9, 2016 6:22 p.m. ET
Exxon's Rex Tillerson Is Top Candidate for Secretary of State - WSJ

I doubt it since I think he woudl do well in the Department of Interior.
I

Linc · Dec 9, 2016

Re: Exxon’s Rex Tillerson Is Top Candidate for Secretary of State

McMorris Rodgers expected to get Interior .

Gonzo Rodeo · Dec 9, 2016

Re: Exxon’s Rex Tillerson Is Top Candidate for Secretary of State

Petraeus? Well, at least he's already had his email scandal where he mishandled classified.

Gaugingcatenate · Dec 9, 2016

Re: Exxon’s Rex Tillerson Is Top Candidate for Secretary of State

Gonzo Rodeo said:
Petraeus? Well, at least he's already had his email scandal where he mishandled classified.

The easy thing about that would be the Democrats would be on-board with the nomination of Petraeus. What are they going to say now, when they were backing someone to be CnC who committed far more egregious crimes and was not near as accomplished as he, Petraeus, is?

Slam dunk.

azgreg · Dec 9, 2016

Re: Exxon’s Rex Tillerson Is Top Candidate for Secretary of State

Rex Tillerson? The same Rex Tillerson who was awarded Russia’s Order of Friendship by Putin?

mbig · Dec 9, 2016

Re: Exxon’s Rex Tillerson Is Top Candidate for Secretary of State

azgreg said:
Rex Tillerson? The same Rex Tillerson who was awarded Russia’s Order of Friendship by Putin?

That is just one of the problems with electing a Sociopath.
A 70 year old man who doesn't know who Putin is, has No moral compass/conscience, just sees a 'successful' fellow businessman/leader, and not his designs on US/Europe.
It's incredible unless you realize Trump's 'world' of simple success, and that he was Blind to World events despite living through the Cold War and 'Evil Empire.' And to this day, that Russia is just a giant Kleptocracy.

cont'd WSJ said:
Mr. Tillerson has perhaps the closest ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, having negotiated a 2011 energy partnership deal with Russia that Mr. Putin said could eventually be worth as much as $500 billion. In 2012, the Kremlin bestowed the country’s "Order of Friendship" decoration on Mr. Tillerson.

This pre-existing relationship with Mr. Putin complements Mr. Trump’s push to improve U.S.-Russia ties. A number of Republicans have urged him to be wary of working closely with Russia, warning that it is trying to expand its influence in a way that runs counter to U.S. interests in places such as Ukraine and Syria.

Exxon has a large global presence, and this could introduce sticky conflicts of interest if Mr. Tillerson is selected. The company explores for oil and gas on six of the world’s continents and has operations in more than 50 countries. Mr. Tillerson, who is slated to retire next year, has retirement funds worth tens of millions of dollars, a value that could potentially be affected by State Department activities. For example, he could benefit from such potential department actions as the lifting of sanctions on Russia."..."

Quaestio · Dec 9, 2016

Re: Exxon’s Rex Tillerson Is Top Candidate for Secretary of State

THIS Rex Tillerson?

What Exxon Knew

Aristaeus · Dec 10, 2016

Re: Exxon’s Rex Tillerson Is Top Candidate for Secretary of State

And America's move to a fully fledged oligarchy is complete.

Hawkeye10 · Dec 10, 2016

Re: Exxon’s Rex Tillerson Is Top Candidate for Secretary of State

Well this sure sounds like Trump dont it...

I would rather have Petraeus.

Quaestio · Dec 10, 2016

Re: Exxon’s Rex Tillerson Is Top Candidate for Secretary of State

Hawkeye10 said:
Well this sure sounds like Trump dont it...

I would rather have Petraeus.

Petraeus? The former CIA Director who was forced to resign because he gave his mistress Top Secret classified documents?

"..on Tuesday, March 3, 2015, the U.S. Justice Department announced that Petraeus agreed to plead guilty in federal court in Charlotte, North Carolina to a charge of unauthorized removal and retention of classified information.[200] In the 15 page statement of facts filed by the government along with the plea agreement, the government stated that Petraeus had provided Broadwell access to documents containing Top Secret Sensitive Compartmented Information, had later moved those documents to his personal residence and stored them in an unsecured drawer, and had deliberately and intentionally lied to Federal investigators about both providing Broadwell access to the documents and their improper storage. These facts were acknowledged to be true by Petraeus as part of his plea agreement.[201]
On April 23, 2015, a federal judge sentenced Petraeus to two years probation"

https://www.washingtonpost.com/news...ut-in-court-documents/?utm_term=.747058a74d41

Um, he can't even travel outside the US yet because of his probation. A big part of a SoS's job is travelling.

mbig · Dec 10, 2016

Re: Exxon’s Rex Tillerson Is Top Candidate for Secretary of State

Trump Said CIA Lies But Then Winks as He Makes Putin’s BFF New Fave as SecState
By Hrafnkell Haraldsson on Sat, Dec 10th, 2016 at 7:56 am
Tillerson opposed sanctions and Exxon’s stock will skyrocket if those sanctions are lifted, something he will be in a position to leverage as SecState
Trump Said CIA Lies But Then Winks as He Makes Putin's BFF New Fave as SecState

....Some had hoped for Romney, who, while completely clueless is at least not insane, but Tillerson has apparently leapfrogged over even 2012’s Republican nominee for president. Obviously, there was quite a bit of resistance to Romney from within the Trump circle, who want only unhinged conspiracy theorists surrounding our commander-in-chief.

Like Giuliani, Tillerson represents a vast network of overseas conflicts of interest. Of course, Giuliani, who runs a global consulting firm, passed the Trump test and there is no doubt that a lot or a little conflict of interest is not going to disqualify anyone from a place in a Trump cabinet.

Nor, of course, will Tillerson’s very close ties with Vladimir Putin, ties deeper even than the presidents-elect. In 2013, Tillerson accepted the Order of Friendship from Putin, and in 2014 Forbes was asking, “Will Exxon’s ‘Bromance’ With The Kremlin Help Keep Putin In Check?”

It doesn’t seem to matter that Tillerson opposed sanctions on Russia and that Exxon’s stock will skyrocket if those sanctions are lifted, something he will be in a position to leverage as Secretary of State. After all, what’s one more rich white corrupt elite in a Trump administration already full of them?

As Jennifer Rubin wrote at The Washington Post‘s “Right Turn” the other day, “Tillerson might be the worst secretary of state contender on Trump’s list.”

So why in the world would Trump be considering this guy? Maybe the people-pleaser Trump is trying to butter up whoever recommended Tillerson. That said, his nomination would be a disaster, one that could enrage anti-Russia hawks in both parties and anger both climate-change believers and deniers. In short, the only person who would like this nomination would be — you guessed it — Putin.”.."..."

Renae · Dec 10, 2016

Rex Tillerson of ExxonMobil Expected to Be Named Trump's Secretary of State: Sources

Donald Trump is expected to nominate ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson as his secretary of state, two sources close to the transition process told NBC News on Saturday.
The 64-year-old veteran oil executive has no government or diplomatic experience. The pick would put to rest weeks-long speculation of who would earn the post as the U.S.'s top diplomat. Tillerson would be fourth in line to the presidency.

Rex Tillerson of ExxonMobil Expected to Be Named Trump'''s Secretary of State: Sources - NBC News

nota bene · Dec 10, 2016

Re: Rex Tillerson of ExxonMobil Expected to Be Named Trump's Secretary of State: Sour

From your link: "He will also be paired with former U.N. Ambassador John Bolton as his deputy secretary of state, one of the sources added, with Bolton handling day-to-day management of the department."

I don't understand why Bolton would want to be Tillerson's second.

PeteEU · Dec 10, 2016

Re: Rex Tillerson of ExxonMobil Expected to Be Named Trump's Secretary of State: Sour

Ahh another Putin ally in the Trump administration.. figures.

VanceMack · Dec 10, 2016