Abused...

'Abused' Tillerson loses clout on world stage, diplomats say

The State Department's influence wanes further after Trump undermines his top envoy, as some diplomats wonder why Tillerson doesn't quit.

By NAHAL TOOSI

Months of undermining by President Donald Trump have left Secretary of State Rex Tillerson a severely weakened figure on the world stage, according to U.S. and foreign diplomats — some of whom wonder why Tillerson doesn’t simply quit.

Even as the Trump White House signaled it wants to force Tillerson out of his job in the coming weeks, the State Department announced that Tillerson would embark on a visit to Europe next week. But current and former U.S. officials fear that, under the circumstances, further diplomacy by Tillerson could be pointless.

“Other governments have a good reason already to question whether Mr. Tillerson represents the views of the White House, and these latest reports add to that doubt,” said Thomas Countryman, a former career diplomat who served as an assistant secretary of state under President Barack Obama.

The perception that a secretary of state has the trust of — and speaks for — the U.S. president is crucial to his or her sway with foreign leaders, diplomats said.

“It becomes difficult to work with the State Department and the secretary if you’re not sure if they reflect White House thinking,” an Asian ambassador told POLITICO.

Officials worry that an ineffectual chief diplomat could hobble U.S. diplomacy at a critical time, as Trump tries to halt North Korea’s nuclear program and harden his line on Iran and revitalize the U.S. war effort in Afghanistan — although some conceded that Tillerson’s obvious lack of sway over Trump badly diminished his influence long ago.

State Department officials marveled Friday at the surreal plight of their boss, whom the White House is believed to be considering pushing out in favor of CIA Director Mike Pompeo.

“Rome is burning — or the State Department, that is — but Rex is off to Europe,” joked one official.

Expressions of sympathy were mixed with wonder that Tillerson, a former ExxonMobil CEO whom Trump has repeatedly contradicted both publicly and privately, has been willing to suffer so many public indignities.

“He’s been abused for months. What does he expect?” the official added.

Tillerson has faced months of rumors that he is on the verge of leaving, especially after a report in October that he had called Trump a “moron" — a report Tillerson did not deny.

Through it all, Tillerson has pressed ahead, joining Trump’s recent Asia trip and maintaining a relatively successful drive to persuade other countries to reduce or cut their ties with the North Korean regime.

Tillerson’s supporters call his persistence a reflection of his patriotism and willingness to shrug off political sniping for the national interest.

Others say he’s just stubborn.

Tillerson has charted an unusually independent course, spurning many of the traditional roles of his job and spending little time on Washington politicking. He keeps his distance from the media and does not aggressively promote his diplomatic work. He also has repeatedly shrugged off fierce criticism of his plans to downsize and restructure the State Department.

Meanwhile, Tillerson has so far kept on some key aides who have made enemies in the White House. They include his chief of staff, Margaret Peterlin, who is disliked for restricting access to her boss, and press aide R.C. Hammond, who held onto his job even after he admitted to providing a reporter with an incorrect anecdote about Vice President Mike Pence. (The New York Times, citing three unnamed sources, reported Friday that Hammond is expected to leave this month, but Hammond denied that was the case. Hammond did not immediately respond to a request for comment from POLITICO.)

Tillerson’s unwillingness to fire Peterlin or Hammond suggests a certain lack of flexibility, some observers say.

“When Rex is pushed, he digs in his heels,” a senior State Department official said.

Speculation about Tillerson’s future flared up Thursday after The New York Times reported on White House plans — which Trump has not yet signed off on — to ease Tillerson out in the next few weeks while moving Pompeo over to Foggy Bottom.

CNN then reported that White House officials had publicized the plans with the goal of possibly shaming Tillerson into a resignation.

The alleged maneuvering was reminiscent of Trump’s public humiliations of Attorney General Jeff Sessions earlier this year. Sessions, though clearly startled by the president’s actions, has hung on to his job.

And Tillerson, for now anyway, seems determined to hang on, too. On Friday, during a quick appearance before reporters, Tillerson brushed off questions about the alleged White House plot. “It’s laughable,” he said, twice.

Amid speculation that Tillerson could face major tax penalties if he spends less than a year in government after leaving ExxonMobil with a lucrative farewell package, State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said Thursday she had little data on the regulations involved. Nauert added that journalists from reputable news outlets had told her they’d found no factual basis for the theory.

Trump also pushed back on the reports Friday, calling them “FAKE NEWS” on Twitter and adding that “while we disagree on certain subjects, (I call the final shots) we work well together and America is highly respected again!” Trump also posted an Instagram photo of Tillerson’s February swearing-in.

The State Department announced this week that Tillerson will travel to Brussels, Vienna and Paris, including for a meeting of NATO foreign ministers. Aides to Tillerson insisted he’s focused and still fully effective, despite the reports of his professional demise.

“This is not the first time there’s been speculation of this kind in the media, and that has not impeded the secretary from working very effectively with close allies and partners,” a senior State Department official told reporters Friday during a call previewing the trip.

But other State Department officials — especially long-serving career staffers — say endless rumors about a “Rexit” further undermine their diplomatic efforts. Some conceded, however, that those efforts have suffered since before Trump even chose Tillerson to serve as America’s top diplomat.

During the presidential transition period, Trump all but ignored U.S. diplomats’ offers to brief him ahead of phone calls with world leaders. The president, with Tillerson’s acquiescence, has proposed slashing the State Department’s budget by roughly a third, drawing protests from congressional Republicans and Democrats alike.

And, through a combination of slowness at the White House and by Tillerson, numerous leadership slots at the State Department remain unfilled, while policy decisions are increasingly made by a handful of aides to the secretary who often freeze out career diplomats with years of expertise. Meanwhile, foreign diplomats privately concede that, under Trump, they often turn to the White House first before engaging with the State Department.

The way things are right now, “I’m not sure if State could be taken less seriously,” one State Department official said.

At the same time, the White House has taken the lead on some major foreign policy issues. Jared Kushner, Trump’s son-in-law and a top aide, has been handling the Israeli-Palestinian portfolio, for instance, and has become a key point man for Saudi and other Gulf Arab officials trying to influence Trump.

Kushner and Tillerson are reported to have clashed a number of times. One recent CNN report said White House officials were angry that Tillerson declined to send a high-level State Department official along with Trump’s daughter Ivanka — who is married to Kushner — when she appeared last month at the Global Entrepreneurship Summit in India.