WaPo: Trump Openly Mocked Tillerson’s Mannerisms, Slow Texas Drawl

TOPSHOT - US President Donald Trump (R) shakes hands with Rex Tillerson (L) as Tillerson's wife Renda St. Clair look on after Tillerson was sworn in as Secretary of State in the Oval Office at the White House in Wash... TOPSHOT - US President Donald Trump (R) shakes hands with Rex Tillerson (L) as Tillerson's wife Renda St. Clair look on after Tillerson was sworn in as Secretary of State in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, DC, on February 1, 2017. President Trump notched a victory with confirmation of Rex Tillerson as his secretary of state, but opposition Democrats girded for battle over several other nominations, including his pick for the US Supreme Court. / AFP / NICHOLAS KAMM (Photo credit should read NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images) MORE LESS
Start your day with TPM.
Sign up for the Morning Memo newsletter

President Donald Trump did not hide his frustrations with Secretary of State Rex Tillerson in public, evidenced by his tweets in recent months chastising Tillerson for attempting to reach a diplomatic solution with “Rocket Man” in North Korea.

That public humiliation culminated Tuesday in Trump’s decision to inform his secretary of state that he was out of a job via Twitter.

But Trump also reportedly wasn’t shy about expressing his irritation with Tillerson in private, in the West Wing, either.

According to The Washington Post, Trump became annoyed with Tillerson early-on in the presidency and would openly mock Tillerson’s “mannerisms and Texas drawl, saying his secretary of state talked too slowly,” in the Post’s words.

Trump would also reportedly tell friends and advisers that Tillerson was “weak” and would often name off other people he thought would be better at the job. Trump was reportedly particularly irked with Tillerson over his negative news coverage, according to the Post.

“This guy never gets a good story,” Trump said, according to an adviser who spoke with the Post.

Tillerson wasn’t innocent of mocking Trump either. The secretary of state reportedly called Trump a “moron” last summer, which pushed Trump to tweet challenging Tillerson’s I.Q.

Among his frustrations with the President, Tillerson was reportedly bothered by Trump’s impulsive behavior, his vulgarity and his inability to focus. Despite that, Tillerson reportedly wanted to stay in the job, even up until the point that he found out through Twitter Tuesday that he had been fired.

Latest Livewire
Comments
Masthead Masthead
Founder & Editor-in-Chief:
Executive Editor:
Managing Editor:
Associate Editor:
Editor at Large:
General Counsel:
Publisher:
Head of Product:
Director of Technology:
Associate Publisher:
Front End Developer:
Senior Designer: