Despite outcome, Tillerson took a thankless but important job

Rex Tillerson, the former CEO of ExxonMobil and outgoing secretary of state, has never struck me as a thin-skinned or particularly egocentric person.

He is, of course, an engineer by training who joined Exxon in 1975 and spent his entire career there until retiring in 2017 to join President Donald Trump’s administration. Tillerson wasn’t a traditional pick for secretary of state. And the civil servants who work at the State Department weren’t entirely enamored of his leadership. Some of them may even have been relieved by the news that Trump had decided to give him the boot.

“Mike Pompeo, Director of the CIA, will become our new Secretary of State. He will do a fantastic job!” Trump tweeted on Tuesday morning.

“Thank you to Rex Tillerson for his service! Gina Haspel will become the new Director of the CIA, and the first woman so chosen. Congratulations to all!” the president continued.

Tillerson, who had been in Africa on a goodwill tour, was reportedly caught off guard by the news. By the end of the day, Stephen Goldstein, the undersecretary who reported that detail, had been unceremoniously fired, too.

In any case, Tillerson returned to the United States and spoke to the press.

He began by confirming that the president had called him shortly after noon and that in light of their conversation, he had decided to delegate his responsibilities to Deputy Secretary of State John J. Sullivan, so that the latter could more effectively lead the department until Pompeo is confirmed.

“What is most important is to ensure an orderly and smooth transition during a time that the country continues to face significant policy and national security challenges,” Tillerson explained.

It’s hard to argue with that