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Speaking at Stanford University after being introduced by former top diplomat Condoleezza Rice, Tillerson said the Trump administration was determined not to repeat President Barack Obama's "mistake" when he withdrew U.S. troops from Iraq in 2011. Republicans for years have argued the withdrawal created the opening for IS' rapid expansion.... Securing a successful U.N. peace process, getting Syrian President Bashar Assad to leave power, ridding Syria of Iran's influence and eradicating all weapons of mass destruction in the country.

A pair of rogue regimes with a longing for nuclear weapons promise to dominate Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s second year atop Foggy Bottom. Tillerson, in following President Trump’s distaste for former President Barack Obama’s decision-making, declared in 2017 an end to the era of “strategic patience” with Iran and North Korea. As the nation’s top diplomat, he has to try to rally international support for Trump’s more aggressive posture. Diplomacy doesn’t stop at home, though. Tillerson has to persuade Congress to support his vision for reorganizing the State Department, while maintaining his position in the administration, which has seemed...

US Ambassador to Israel David Friedman recently asked the State Department to cease using the term 'occupation' to describe Israel's presence in Judea, Samaria, and eastern Jerusalem, according a report by Kan, the Israel Broadcasting Corporation. According to the report, the State Department objected to the request, but eventually agreed to discuss the matter. Ambassador Friedman described Judea and Samaria as being under an "alleged occupation" in an interview with the Jerusalem Post in September. Later that month, he stated that he believes Jewish communities in Judea and Samaria are part of Israel. “I think the settlements are part of...

President Trump is well known for his brash and confrontational style of governing – but it could be the more diplomatic side of his administration generating some of the biggest victories in 2017. Amid all the debate over issues like the travel ban, the border wall and health care, senior officials in the White House and State Department have quietly worked behind the scenes to resolve a major concern of the president: securing the release of American citizens detained by foreign governments and terror groups. “Immediately after President Trump took office, he told Secretary [of State Rex] Tillerson to prioritize...

A supposed "rising star" at the State Department has resigned in anger over President Trump's and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson's policies. Elizabeth Shackelford gave her resignation letter to the left-leaning Foreign Policy magazine, which was, of course, all too happy to publish it. Shackelford's letter says she believes the new administration has abandoned human rights as a priority and shows disdain for the State Department's diplomatic work. "I have deep respect for the career Foreign and Civil Service staff who, despite the stinging disrespect this Administration has shown our profession, continue the struggle to keep our foreign policy on...

In order to test whether a peace settlement is possible between Israel and the Palestinian Authority, the U.S. embassy must be relocated to Jerusalem as soon as possible. Close to 25 years after the signing of the Oslo Accords, it appears that Israel and the PA are no closer to peace. It is high time that the U.S. takes a different path to test whether the PA is ready to make true peace with Israel or whether this long-winded peace process is no more than a seemingly endless charade. Israel has repeatedly taken actions in its quest for peace, including...

President Trump plans to give a speech next week naming Jerusalem as the capital of Israel, according to an Axios report published Friday. The report cites a “White House spokesman” who told the news outlet that Mr. Trump always planned to address the matter, but he has been waiting for the right time to make the announcement. The speech is currently slated for Wednesday. “The President has always said it is a matter of when, not if. The President is still considering options and we have nothing to announce,” the spokesman told Axios.

President Donald Trump dismissed the rumors that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson would be leaving his position were "fake news" made up by the media. Earlier on Friday, Tillerson also said he was going to be sticking around and laughed off reports he was out.            Trump posted a tweet and an Instagram about how he had not fired Tillerson, and that while they may disagree on things, they "work well together." Trump said he also calls the final shots when he does not agree with Tillerson on something. Tillerson, Trump believes, will help make America...

If the rumor proves true that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is about to lose his job, he’ll doubtless regret leaving far less than accepting the post in the first place. He tried, but he was the wrong man for the wrong job in the wrong administration. Despite the public embarrassment of his dismissal, Tillerson likely will be relieved to hand off his thankless Cabinet post to his bruited replacement, CIA Director Mike Pompeo. Tillerson’s former tenure atop Exxon did not prepare him for this role. Even a multinational’s CEO has only to deliver one bottom line. By contrast, an...

White House chief of staff John Kelly called the State Department on Thursday to dispel media reports that a plan had been developed to remove Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, agency spokeswoman Heather Nauert said.

The White House has drafted and is circulating a plan for the exit of Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, CBS News confirms. The plan is for Tillerson, who has been on the job for less than a year, to be replaced by the current CIA director, Mike Pompeo. The White House has not yet decided who would replace Pompeo, but names under consideration include Sen. Tom Cotton, R-Arkansas, and Robert Harward, former deputy commander of U.S. Central Command. The CIA has no comment on this report. Cotton is trusted by the president and has advised Mr. Trump on foreign policy...

The White House has developed a plan to force out Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson, whose relationship with President Trump has been strained, and replace him with Mike Pompeo, the C.I.A. director, within the next several weeks, senior administration officials said on Thursday. Mr. Pompeo would be replaced at the C.I.A. by Senator Tom Cotton, a Republican from Arkansas who has been a key ally of the president on national security matters, according to the White House plan. Mr. Cotton has signaled that he would accept the job if offered, said the officials, who insisted on anonymity to discuss...

from Laura Ingraham

A succession plan appears to be in place after a year of a strained relationship between President Donald Trump and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, according to reports. CIA Director Mike Pompeo is in line to take over as the nation's top diplomat "within the next several weeks," The New York Times says, citing senior White House officials.

PARIS -- Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has been working the plunger on the overseas branch of the Washington swamp's public relations department, also known as the U.S. State Department. Some of the swamp critters are now to the point of flushing themselves down the drain, either out of honor or frustration or both. Tillerson has shaken up his department this year, according to the New York Times, dismissing numerous staffers and forcing many others into early retirement. Meanwhile, diplomats are "sounding the alarm," the Times reports, evoking the specter of Benghazi and framing their own plank-walking as a potential...

A tale of sadness and woe from the liberal democrat professionals in the State Department: Mr. Miller got just five minutes with the secretary of state, the former officials said. Afterward, Mr. Miller, a career Foreign Service officer, was pushed out, joining a parade of dismissals and early retirements that has decimated the State Department’s senior ranks. Mr. Miller declined to comment. The departures mark a new stage in the broken and increasingly contentious relationship between Mr. Tillerson and much of his department’s work force. By last spring, interviews at the time suggested, the guarded optimism that greeted his arrival...

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson released a statement marking Monday Transgender Day of Remembrance. Tillerson’s statement condemned the violence against transgender individuals, saying that they “should not be subjected to violence or discrimination.” “Transgender individuals and their advocates, along with lesbian, gay, bisexual and intersex persons, are facing increasing physical attacks and arbitrary arrests in many parts of the world,” Tillerson wrote. “Often these attacks are perpetrated by government officials, undermining the rule of law.” Transgender Day of Remembrance has been commemorated on Nov. 20 for nearly 20 years, and the White House began participating in 2012, according to GLAAD....

<p>WASHINGTON — A group of about a dozen U.S. State Department officials have taken the unusual step of formally accusing Secretary of State Rex Tillerson of violating a federal law designed to stop foreign militaries from enlisting child soldiers, according to internal government documents reviewed by Reuters.</p>

December 2017 Foreign Service Journal President’s Views By AFSA President Ambassador Barbara Stephenson I begin with a reminder that we, the members of the career Foreign Service, have an obligation as stewards of our institution to be effective advocates for why diplomacy matters. That requires some skill in explaining how diplomacy works. While raising awareness of and appreciation for the Foreign Service is a longstanding goal, one AFSA has pursued with renewed vigor and impact over the past couple years, the need to make the case for the Foreign Service with fellow Americans and our elected representatives has taken on...

The ranks of top US diplomats are being depleted at a “dizzying” speed, the head of America’s diplomatic trade union has warned. Since January, the number of “two-star” minister counselors has dropped by 42% and “three-star” career ministers by 14%, according to Barbara Stephenson, president of the American Foreign Service Association (AFSA) and former ambassador to Panama. At the highest ranks of the State Department, the number of career ambassadors has dropped from five to two, after the retirement of three top diplomats. “These numbers are hard to square with the stated agenda of making State and the Foreign Service...