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Friday is “You’re Fired!” day in the reality show White House run by host and star President Donald J. Trump.
Something has to break today. Either Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will leave the administration, or some kind of modus vivendi will be reached between Tillerson and Trump. Chief of Staff John Kelly doesn’t want any more cabinet shake-ups this year, for the sake of stability. Secretary of Defense James Mattis and Kelly get along well with Tillerson and support him. Trump needs Mattis and Kelly–Tillerson not so much.
Trump (probably) leaked the story on Pompeo (Axios reports it as “sources”). The pressure for Tillerson to go is getting very strong. Possibly Pompeo would be a good replacement since he seems to understand the job and the intricacies of dealing with Trump better than CEO Tillerson.
One thing is fairly certain. There will be a “come to Jesus” meeting in the West Wing today, and it will likely be frank, and not pretty. Trump will explode and do his petulant child thing. Kelly and Mattis will sit through it and then get to the bottom of things. If Mattis and Kelly want Tillerson to stay, they might have to put their own jobs on the line to accomplish that. But nobody can stop Trump from tweeting, so they may only make their jobs harder by forcing the boss to accede to their wishes–and he won’t bow forever.
I personally think that the turmoil created by Tillerson remaining at least equals the turmoil of him leaving. Unless there’s something we don’t know (North Korea, Iran, China, Russia), then it’s likely we’ll see another Firing Friday at the White House.
Perspectives
Is There a Major Shakeup Coming at the State Department? | The Resurgent
According to the report, another Cabinet shuffle is forthcoming, with current CIA Director Mike Pompeo being considered to replace the disgruntled Rex Tillerson, as Secretary of State.
Sources tell us Trump recognizes that a Cabinet shuffle would bring bad press. White House Chief of Staff John Kelly wants stability, and so is discouraging high-level departures before next year.
And yet, insiders say Trump’s relationship with Tillerson is broken beyond repair. We’re told Trump was furious that Tillerson didn’t try to blunt the story about him calling the president a “moron,” by just going out and denying it (whether or not it actually occurred).
Another element to the story is that chief of staff John Kelly was set to travel with the president on Air Force One on Wednesday, the same day the “moron” story broke, but was abruptly pulled from the flight. Some are saying it was so he could stay back and work on the chaos the story caused. A later report stated that Kelly called Defense Secretary James Mattis and Tillerson to the White House, in order to work through the tensions.
CIA chief Mike Pompeo floated to possibly replace Rex Tillerson – NY Daily News
Pompeo, 53, enjoys a good relationship with the President and personally brings Trump his daily intelligence briefings, sources told the politics website. A State Department representative later said it didn’t happen. Foreign leaders would likely view him as a credible member of Trump’s team, which Axios said they haven’t seen with Tillerson, who didn’t work in politics before taking over in January.
Rex Tillerson & Donald Trump — Tillerson Should Resign | National Review
If Secretary of State Rex Tillerson resigned, how would anyone know? His relationship with the president of the United States is strained at best, he has no philosophy or signature initiative, he has barely staffed his own department, and he’s alienated the foreign service. Who knows the truth of the NBC story that he was close to quitting last summer over clashes with President Donald Trump?
Trump undercuts Tillerson with every tweet – LA Times
“We’re not going to accept a nuclear-armed North Korea,” Tillerson told reporters after his meetings. They’re a little overheated right now.” Meanwhile, in the United States, President Trump erupted. In case those two tweets weren’t enough to convey the nuances of nuclear diplomacy, Trump added a third.
White House on Tillerson: ‘The president can’t undercut his own Cabinet’ – POLITICO
“The president is the leader of the Cabinet. Story Continued Below “What’s your response to those who say the president has undercut the secretary of state?” a reporter asked Sanders Thursday. The president can’t undercut his own Cabinet,” Sanders replied.
Reactions
Trump rages. Tillerson summoned. Pence fumes. Hammond on ice. Juicy aftermath of "moron"-gate by NBC team https://t.co/W7EqQNcP2X
— Philip Rucker (@PhilipRucker) October 6, 2017
I wonder what made Trump more angry…that Tillerson called him a fucking moron, or that NBC reported it?
— Rick Wilson (@TheRickWilson) October 6, 2017
Rex Tillerson, who called Donald Trump a "fucking moron," is now considered most trusted Cabinet member by most Americans. #TrumpIsAMoron
— Jon Cooper ?? (@joncoopertweets) October 5, 2017
Well placed media source (WH credentialed) is telling me not to expect any high level resignations tonight. i.e. no Kelly or Tillerson. FYI
— Claude Taylor (@TrueFactsStated) October 6, 2017
Trump administration officials blame ex @WhiteHouse chief strategist Stephen Bannon for leaking Tillerson “moron” comment.
— Steve Herman (@W7VOA) October 6, 2017
Hearing buzz that Trump's Chief of Staff, John Kelly, is resigning tomorrow, but then again, we thought the same for Tillerson. Who knows?
— Charlotte Clymer?️? (@cmclymer) October 6, 2017
Today feels like a “Rex Tillerson decides to spend more time with his family” kind of Friday
— Allahpundit (@allahpundit) October 6, 2017
Final thoughts
There’s so much speculation, leaks and “sources” here that it’s hard to sort out fact from spin. Maybe that’s on purpose, knowing how this administration operates.
In the end, either Tillerson or Kelly, or both will go. Tillerson leaving will not be a tragedy for the country or the White House. He was a wild card when Trump picked him…due to lobbying efforts of Condoleeza Rice. If the ex-CEO of Exxon didn’t work out, nobody’s harmed, and Steve Bannon will crow like a rooster at his departure.
John Kelly’s resignation, on the other hand, would be a major blow to the administration and Trump’s presidency.
We need to hope that the “come to Jesus” ends with some kind of reasonable result and not a bloodbath for the White House.
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