Picking 64-year-old Exxon-Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson for Secretary of State speaks volumes about where President-elect Donald Trump wants to take the country. Only Oct. 12, 80-year-old Sen. John McCain (R-Az.), chairman of the Armed Services Committee, urged President Barack Obama to set up a dangerous no-fly zone in Syria, talking about shooting down Syrian or Russian warplanes if they violate the space. McCain’s suggestion prompted German Foreign Minister, soon-to-be president in 2017, Frank-Walter Steinmeir to warn of WWIII. President Barack Obama’s icy relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin, especially since in March 1, 2014 invasion of Crimea, pushed U.S.-Russian relations to Cold War lows. Picking Tillerson, Trump signals he wants to pull the world from the brink and partner up with Russia on a host of geopolitical issues.
Trump faces stiff opposition, especially with McCain ally, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee slated for Tillerson’s confirmation hearing. Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fl.), one of Trump’s biggest critics in the 2016 campaign, signaled he intends to oppose the nomination. War hawks on Capitol Hill led by McCain want to continue the Syrian War, blaming Putin for the carnage in Syria. Picking Tillerson, Trump sends a loud message to war hawks on Capitol Hill that he no longer backs the White House proxy war against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Only Sunday, McCain savaged Putin in the press. “Vladimir Putin is a thug, a murderer, a killer and a KGB agent,” McCain said Dec. 11, signaling no intent of letting Trump reset U.S.-Russian relations. McCain’s fired up after winning another six-year-term Nov. 8.
McCain’s public remarks are so outrageous, so beyond the pale, so out-of-line that Trump’s going to have difficulty conducting, as mandated by the Constitution, U.S. foreign policy. While there’s nothing wrong with McCain holding strong opinions, he doesn’t speak for Trump’s incoming administration. If Obama had followed McCain’s advice, the world would be at the brink. McCain’s foreign policy in Syrian involves arming Syrian rebels to topple al-Assad, pitting the U.S. against Russia, al-Assad’s key ally. While not backing a no-fly zone, Obama armed Syrian rebels for nearly six years. Picking Tillerson, Trump takes the exact opposite direction, letting Putin keep al-Assad in power. With the Syrian army now controlling Aleppo, the Saudi-U.S.-Turkey-backed opposition has collapsed, prompting war hawks like McCain to double-down on backing the failed rebel revolt..
Trump’s foreign policy is on a collision course with war hawks like McCain on Capitol Hill. Trump wants Tillerson to reverse directions in the Middle East, especially in Syria and Iraq. “He will promote regional stability and focus on the core national security interests of the United States,” said Trump, announcing Tillerson’s appointment. “Rex knows how to manage a global enterprise, which is crucial to running a successful State Department, and his relationships with leaders all of over the world are second to none,” Trump told reporters. “My philosophy is to make money,” Tillerson told PBS journalist Charlie Rose in 2013. Adding, “but it really is, for us, it’s about making quality investments for our shareholders, and it’s not a quality,” underscoring, as Secretary of State, he’d open up markets for U.S. businesses, precisely what other secretaries of state have done.
When President Richard Nixon’s National Security Advisor Henry Kissinger opened up diplomatic relations with China in 1971, it paved the way for Nixon’s Feb. 21-28, 1972 visit. Criticizing Tillerson for his strong ties to foreign leaders, including Putin, makes no sense. As chief U.S. diplomat, opening up new business opportunities is precisely the role of Secretary of State. Rubio announced he has “serious concerns about his nomination,” precisely because of Tillerson’s strong business ties with Russia. Tillerson received the Order of Friendship from Putin in 2013 for “special merits in strengthening peace, friendship, cooperation and understanding between peoples,” something Rubio takes with only suspicion. Since dropping out after losing the March 15 Florida primary, Rubio’s been a thorn in Trump’s side, promising more hazing for Tillerson on the Foreign Relations Committee.
Rubio and other Senate war hawks want to continue the sanctions against Russia for invading Crimea March 1, 2014. Of all the concerns about Tillerson, improving relations with Russia should be high on the priority list. McCain has nothing good to say about Putin, pressuring Tillerson to strike a more strident tone. Tillerson wants to open up more deals not kill them by heaping on more sanctions an angry rhetoric. If you listed to McCain disparaging Putin, you’d think he’s ready to start firing Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles [ICBMs] at Moscow. “I am honored by President-elect Trump’s nomination and share his vision for restoring the credibility of the United State foreign relations and advancing our country’s national security,” said Tillerson, signaling he intends to restore good diplomatic relations with Russia. McCain, Graham, Rubio and others want to continue the Cold War.
