in a way yes donald trump said himself that he shows rex tillerson. because he looked the part of secretary of state had a number of options he chose the formal or the c.e.o. because he doesn't trump it he would cut a good figure in this job but then he undercuts rex tillerson time and again when so many issues don't trump himself mentions a few in his statement that we saw a few minutes ago. on iran on north korea they clearly had different opinions again now while he was in africa and rex tillerson condemned the russian role in the poisoning of performance by the u.k. in much stronger words on the trump himself on the white house so there were definitely disagreements rex tillerson reportedly called on the trump more on after discussion over afghanistan strategy and he never really didn't he said that so we can assume he probably did say that donald trump doesn't forget such things and so he was probably just waiting for a good time from his perspective to get rid of to listen now in contrast to that difficult relationship cost and donald trump spea

president to donald trump aside the secretary of state rex tillerson the president broke this surprise news on twitter to tell us and for his service cia director mike pompei or has been nominated as the new secretary of state ga the hospital is the president's preference to take over at the c i mr trump has been speaking about the changes. i've worked with mike now for quite some time. from mendis energy tremendous in the last year always on the same wavelength. the relationship has been very good about what i did as secretary of state. highways rex tillerson well you know by the way who i know very well who i work very closely will be the first woman director of the cia she's an outstanding president also i have got to tell very well so i've gotten to know a lot of people very well over the last year and i'm really at a point where we're getting very close to having the capital and other things that i want but i think mike pump aoe will be a truly great secretary of state i have total confidence in him and as far as rex tillerson is concerned i very much appreciate his commitment tha

rex say very good man. i like rex a lot. i appreciate his commitment and his service and i'll be speaking to rex over a long period of time. i can't hear you. [question inaudible] >> i made that decision myself. rex wasn't in the country. i made the north korea decision with consultation with many people but i made the decision by myself. i actually got along well with rex but really it was a different mind set. a different thinking. [question inaudible] >> say it again. i respect his intellect and the process we've all gone through together. we have a very good relationship for whatever reason, chemistry, why do people get along? from day one i've gotten along well with mike pompeo and frankly i get along well with rex too. i wish rex a lot of good things. i think he'll be very happy. i think rex will be much happier now but i really appreciate his service but with mike we've had a very good chemistry right from the beginning. [question inaudible] >> well, it sounds to me -- i'm speaking to theresa may today. it sounds like

rex tillerson is gone. the larger issue around here, and i think, you know, both my fellow panel members have touched on this, this white house is being managed like a clown rodeo. politics aside, partisan politics aside, you can't manage the federal government, the business campaign, your family life, when everyone around you is constantly getting axed. and it's also nosable that the two most notorious layoffs of the trump administration, jim comey and rex tillerson appeared when both of them were out of town. that's a lack of courage in leadership. if you're going to dismiss somebody, dismiss them to their face. >> i see it a little bit different. i think tillerson represented the traditional foreign policy point of view. the president doesn't share that. whether it's tar riches which really goes against, bob, you know, as a republican position most of the time. i think he spoke out on that. he went over to korea, right, or he was going to do something in korea. and the president said you're wasting your

thankfully i get along well with rex too and you know i wish rex a lot of good things i think he's going to do i think he's going to be very happy i think rex will be much happier now but i really appreciate his service but with mike we've had a very good chemistry right from the beginning. so we've been talking an awful lot about rex tillerson and mike pump a a but we haven't mentioned much gina hospital less she's been nominated to be the first ever female director of the cia at the agency has been. she says his deputy to write to to mike pompei is since last february many cia veterans including in the obama administration praised her record and that's despite what u.s. media has been saying. that she oversold the torture of two detainees in toyland around fifteen years ago the hospital has been accused of destroying evidence of those interrogations so that i'm sure something we're going to be hearing a lot more about but let's hear from the president himself as to why he picked this cia director. you know by the way who i know very well what worked very closely will be the first woman

frankly i get along well with rex, too. i wish rex a lot of good things. i think he's going to be very happy. i think rex will be much happier now. but i really appreciate his service. with mike, we've had a very good chemistry right from the beginning. >> [ inaudible question ]. >> it sounds to me -- i'm speaking to theresa may today. it sounds to me like it would be russia based on all of the evidence they have. i don't know if they've come to a conclusion, but she's calling me today. as you know, now we're going to the wall. we're going out to the wall and looking at the prototype which is very important for our country. but theresa may is going to be speaking to me today. it sounds to me like they believe it was russia, and i would certainly take that finding as fact. >> [ inaudible ] question. >> as soon as we get the facts straight and we're going to be speaking with the british today. we're speaking with theresa may today. as soon as we get the facts straight, if we agree with them, we will condemn russia or whoever it may be. i have not spoken to h

president donald trump cites the secretary of state's rex tillerson had just completed a tour of africa told it was apparently cut short so says suggests he has not been told why he's. president meanwhile has been heaping praise on the man he wants to replace rex tillerson cia director mike pumpin a. tremendous energy from the left you're always going to say wave like. relate to the very good. secretary of state. i'm phil gal welcome to the program u.s. president donald trump past societies secretary of state rex tillerson the president broke the surprise news on twitter thanking his to tell us and for his service cia director mike pump has been nominated as the new secretary of state and you know hospital is the president's choice to take over at the cia mr trump has been speaking about the changes. i've worked with mike bomb now for quite some time. prevent this energy from and this is the lack there always on the same wavelength. the relationship has been very good and that's what i did as secretary of state i wish rex tillerson well gina by the way well i know very well who i've wor

and frankly, i get along well with rex, too. you know, i wish rex a lot of good things. i think he's going to do -- he's going to be very happy. rex will be happier now. i appreciate his service. with mike, we've had a good chemistry from the beginning. >> harris, you played some reaction from capitol hill from the house minority leader. the senate minority leader said the instable of this administration in every area weakens america. if he's confirmed, we hope mr. pompeo will toughen up or policies towards russia and putin. there was controversy over the president's pick to replace pompeo at the cia. gina haskell, a 32-year veteran. she came up through the ranks and a first time a woman has led the cia. she also played a big role in the cia black site operations in the early 2000s. the extraordinary rendition and water boarding. already opponents are lining up against her for her expected confirmation hearing. so there may be a little bit of difficulty on that front. one other personnel change that is raising eyebrows. the president's body man suddenly left the white ho

rex is a very good pan. i like rex a lot. i really appreciate his commitment to this service and i'll be speaking to reck for over a long period of time. [ inaudible question ] >> i can't hear you. [ inaudible question ] >> no, i really didn't discuss it very much with him, honestly. i made that decision by myself. rex wasn't, as you know in this country. i made the north korea decision from other people but i made that decision by myself. [ inaudible question ] >> what? [ inaudible question ] s >> say it again. >> why is mike pompeo the right man right now? >> i respect his intellect and the process we've don't through together. we have a very good relationship, for whatever reason, come industry, whatever it is why do people get along. i always said from the beginning from day one, i've gotten along well with pompeo. and frankly i got along with rex too. i wish him great things. i think rex will be much happier now. with pike we had a good chemistry right from the beginning. >> you know, halle wen we listen to the president

president donald trump as we said as sacked secretary of state rex tillerson has replaced him with cia director mike pompei oh the move comes after tillerson broke with the white house to say russia was probably behind that nerve agent attack in britain a trump said on twitter that the cia deputy director gina hostile will succeed pump a zero at the cia becoming the first woman to run the spy agency. and let's go back to washington our correspondent there custom phenomena in washington carson we were just talking about this a poisoning attack in the u.k. is there any indication at this point if it really is true that this was the straw that broke the camel's back what led to rex tillerson being sacked today. it is possible as i said but that is only speculation or. and educated guess if you like but the official reason that the white house gave was that donald trump wanted to do this change now because he wants to assemble a new foreign policy and security team at the white house to prepare for a potential summit with north korea's dictator kim jong il. we don't know yet if that means

rex tillerson is out. we've just learned so too is a very vocal top aide who contradicts the white house's version of events. cia director mike pompeo, the president's pick to replace tillerson. a lot of reports of how and when the call came down to replace the secretary of state. a lot of versions about why as well. admittedly, a decision that appears to have been a long time coming. yet with the president touting the end of the house russian investigation in big bold capital letters today. not to mention that big photo op trip to california. why now is an equally big mystery laying in the rubble of tillerson's firing. let's start with our reporters. nbc's peter alexander is at the white house. msnbc's garrett haake is on capitol hill. let's start with you, mr mr. alexander. break down the why, the when and the how of it, if you can, as we understand, the facts to be, at 1:01 on the east coast. >> first, the why this happened now. certainly a stunning announcement. the fact it was announced on twitter per

president donald trump has replaced a rex tillerson u.s. secretary of state mike pompei o to be nominated as his successor how is that change being received here in berlin political culture on the ribbon feet of. welcome report what's the reaction you've seen while we've ground political believe we can sum it up with three words sums that this is a rather irritating decision of us is that this is rather bizarre what we are seeing and some even that well this shows how much chaos is in the united states but also sums it up quite well these one nearly official reaction from the deputy minister from the foreign office michel who he tweeted the dismissal of to listen doesn't mean or doesn't make anything but of course that he there says in the end that the german my relationships has been very bowed in the possum that he doesn't really think that things are going to get better yet and reading between the lines that it was because of donald trump the president all the secretary of state oh i do not matter in the end i think it's it's both in the

i, rex wayne tillerson do solemnly swear...so different when he was sworn in, then seen as one of the grown—ups of the administration. but his fate was probably sealed last october, when it was reported he called donald trump "a moron," an accusation he didn't exactly deny. i'm not going to deal with petty stuff like that. i mean, this is what i don't understand about washington. again, you know, i'm not from this place, but the places i come from, we don't deal with that kind of petty nonsense. and then there was the public undermining of the secretary of state by the president, sending family to do work that would normally be done by america's chief diplomat, and public shaming on twitter, like this. "i told rex tillerson, our wonderful secretary of state, that he's wasting his time trying to negotiate with little rocket man." there's not much love lost between donald trump and rex tillerson, they disagreed on policy and didn't much like each other personally. mike pompeo will be much more to donald trump's taste and it's vit

yes, rex-- rex wayne tillerson. ah, the joy of rex. but who is-- i'm sorry-- who was rex tillerson?mall town of exxonmobil. after a life in the gas business, his net worth is $325 million... and ine-tenths of a cent. ha, ha! fractions! and tillerson was a bit of a boy scout-- literally. as a child, he attained the rank of eagle scout, and as an adult, served as national president of the boy scouts from 2010 to 2012, where tillerson prepared for his future in public service by introducing the merit badge in moron identification. ( laughter ) now, from the beginning, tillerson admitted he was an unconventional choice for secretary of state, with no prior government experience. oh, rexy, no government experience? have you seen the rest of the cabinet? we would have settled for "has been to the post office." so why did rex take the job if he was so uncertain? well, he was called by a power even higher than exxon. it seems tillerson only took the secretary of state job "because his wife said god wanted him to." yes, rex, she got a message from god: god wants you out of the house, because

thanks for joining us so months off to reports emerged of a big falling out between donald trump and rex tillerson the u.s. president has now announced the departure office secretary of state's well this is the biggest shake up of trump's cabinet so far it comes at a crucial time for u.s. diplomacy with the world including got a historic meeting between trump and. north korean leader kim jong moon tillerson is being replaced by the cia boss my pump a zero who's job goes to intelligence officer gina hospital president trump revealed all on twitter here it is mike pump a.o. director of the cia will become our new secretary of state he will do a fantastic job thank you threats to listen for his service gina hospital will become the new director of the cia and the first woman to be chosen congratulations to all he tweeted while he's since spoken to reporters on the white house lawn and admitted he didn't always see eye to eye with rex tillerson. i've worked with mike now for quite some time. tremendous energy for many years is the lack. always on the same wavelength. the relationship has bee

rex wasn't in this country, as you know. i made the north korea decision was consultation from many people, but i made at by myself. i actually got along well with rex, but really it was a different mindset, a different thinking. say it again. i respect his intellect, i respect the process that we have all gone through together, and we have a very good relationship. for whatever reason, chemistry, why don't people get along? i have always right from the beginning, i have got along well with mike pompeo, and frankly i get along well with rex, too. and i wish rex a of good things, i think he is known to be very happy. i think rex will be much happier now, but i really appreciate his service. but with mike, we have had very good chemistry right from the beginning. iam speaking chemistry right from the beginning. i am speaking to theresa may today. it sounds to me like it would be russia based on all of the evidence they have. i do not know they have come to a conclusion, but she is calling me today. and we are going out to the

i wish rex tillerson well. gina, by the way, who i know very well, who i worked very closely with, will be the first woman director of the cia. she's an outstanding person who also i have gotten to know very well. i've gotten to know a lot of people very well over the last year and i'm really at a point where we're getting very close to having the cabinet and other things that i want. but i think mike pompeo will be a truly great secretary of state. i have total confidence in him. and as far as rex tillerson is concerned, i very much appreciate his commitment to his service and i wish him well. we got along actually quite well, but we disagreed on things. when you look at the iran deal, i think it is terrible, i guess he thought it was okay. i wanted to either break it or do something, and he felt a little bit differently. so we were not really thinking the same. >> you heard it right there. kaitlan collins at the white house. for more on the thinking about why and when and how this happened. >> well, john, thi

rex tillerson himself was surprised. method of doing it through tweet is also unorthodox. >> that's a nice way to put it. >> weather has been tensions all along. rex tillerson was the last man standing as a moderate in the cabinet. in net since we know that donald trump does not like to be contradicted, so maybe he was the only one who stated that. brent: what kind of reactions have we been getting here in germany? >> i was in parliament earlier today and a lot of people were scratching their heads. the mood was, just when you thought it could not get worse. we have the deputy foreign minister of the german government saying this is not improve things. the leader of the liberal free democrats said this is a fresh sign of volatility. there is certainly a lot of worry. most of the reactions are pretty muted, but i think there is a tone of worry simply because rex tillerson was seen by german politics as a moderating influence in the trump administration. one of the adults you could talk to. brent: that's exactly right. whe

the relationship has been very good and that's what i did as secretary of state i wish rex tillerson well gina by the way who i know very well who i work very closely will be the first woman director of the cia she's an outstanding person who also i have gotten over well so i've gotten to know a lot of people very well over the last year and i'm really at a point where we're getting very close to having the capital and other things that i want but i think mike pump aoe will be a truly great secretary of state i have total confidence in him and as far as rex tillerson is concerned i very much appreciate his commitment that his service and i wish him well you could down. right. direction i've been talking about this for a long time we we've got a long actually quite well but we disagreed on thing when you look at the iran deal i think it's terrible i guess he said it was ok i wanted to see the brake it or do something and he felt a little bit differently so we were not really thinking the same with my my company a we have a very similar thought process i think it's going to go very wel

he did not get along at all with rex tillerson from the very beginning, and rex tillerson's managemento completely misunderstood the state department but he was certainly more traditional on iran, on relationships with allies, most recently last night acknowledging before the white house was willing to that russia was likely behind the attempted assassination of a former russian spy in great britain. >> that's right, andrea. i think secretary tillerson's legacy is going to be that along with secretary mattis he was a voice of reason on the two big national security challenges, north korea and iran. frankly took more traditionally republican conservative positions, a lot of positions that many democrats could support, wanting to talk to north korea, wanting to stay in the iran nuclear deal. where secretary tillerson clearly went astray is that he didn't understand the state department. two consecutive years of 30% budget cuts, a mass exodus, unprecedented in my four decade experience at the state department. of senior officers, and a hollowing out of the ambassadorial corps that has rea

president has fired secretary of state rex tillerson. my commission as secretary of state which terminated midnight thirty first president's nominee to cia director mike peo as his new secretary of state saying the two men are quote on the same wavelength. also coming out of the case of the poisoned spy in a quiet english city will russia respond to britain's midnight deadline. people or police are investigating the unexplained death of yet another russian. i'm good to have you with us even in the chaos of the trumpet ministration today's exit has shocked and stunned much of the world u.s. president donald trump fired his secretary of state rex tillerson the president broke the surprise news on twitter announcing cia director mike pump aoe will be his new choice to be america's top diplomat a short while ago tillerson made a statement in which he warned of the challenges that his successor will face especially from russia. and much work remains to respond to the troubling behavior and actions of on the part of the russian government russ

i believe, compared to rex tillerson. impossible standards and expectations being piled on with respect to the upcoming summit, so one of the things i think mike pompeo will need to do very quickly is to ensure there are some realistic expectations that are set so realistic expectations that are set so that his agency and his leadership and his boss, president trump, are not seen as failure as they encounter the north koreans in may. i do think that is a very difficult point right now that washington has to contend with, the fa ct washington has to contend with, the fact that there are terms like denuclearisation is an other expectations being floated for this one talk. that is going to be very disappointing for many. what with these realistic expectations from this meeting be? there has to be a focus on low hanging fruits. we know between the united states and north korea, there are many, many decades of history, animosity, propaganda, you name it. it's a difficult relationship to untangle. people should not assume this

rex is a very goodm man. i like rex a lot. i really appreciate his commitment to his service, and i will be speaking to rex over a long period of time. >> let's go to our senior white house correspondent jeff zeleny. jeff, do we know when the president made this decision of what the white house is now saying about how secretary tillerson was actually informed? >> reporter: well, just to walk you through a bit of the timeline here, the secretary of state landed at joint base andrews just outside washington around 4:00 a.m. he was in africa for more than a week. less than five hours later, about four and a half hours later or so, this news was announced on twitter. we do know that the secretary of state was informed by white house chief of staff john kelly last friday into saturday. he was in africa. that the president had made a decision tro relieve him of his duties but did not say when that would happen. so employees here at the white house were surprised when the president made the announcement of the timing here, certainly

so when the president said he and rex had been talking about this for a long time, according to rex, they had not been talking about this for a long time. the secretary did not speak to the president. when white house officials then put out word tillerson had been notified days earlier, he had been fired by chief of staff john kelly days before, i should tell you john kelly incidentally is still telling reporters that story tonight. john kelly reportedly bragging to reporters tonight that rex tillerson was on the toilet coping with the effects of a stomach bug when john kelly placed the call letting him know he would be fired and that's nice in its own right but that story toilet or not, appears not to be true. because you know rex tillerson would know whether or not somebody had called him up and told him he was being fired and what he says is that he hadn't spoken to the president and he didn't know why he was being fired and in case there was any question about it, it was said in fact tillerson found out he was fired from trump's tweet on tuesday morning. and that timing ends up b

rex tillerson was steady hand. he got along well obviously with jim mattis, think pompeo is cut from clothe to mattis and kelly than tillerson ever was. trish: robert, stay with me right now. i want to bring in the conversation with us, florida congressman matt gaetz for his reaction. congressman, robert and i have been talking about differences between mike pompeo and rex tillerson. how would you articulate them? >> i would say this is time when a change could be helpful given the current status of our negotiations and discussions with north korea. rex tillerson did a phenomenal job setting the stage using diplomacy as counterbalance to incredible force we've built up in the asia specific region. we have flashpoint to resolve something, that loomed over the korean peninsula, american people, and really global peace for a generation. i think fresh eyes coming in at this point, someone not wedded necessarily to set the table for this negotiation will serve president trump well and one thing we can say about presiden

let's talk about rex tillerson. a sense of western europe and how they are likely to react to this series of events. he was abruptly fired and now, we have mike pompeo coming in. amb. emerson: i was just at the munich security conference a few weeks ago and had an opportunity to talk to senior germans and people from other countries in western europe. in terms of the abruptness, they are getting used to it. that's how this president conducts himself in a new world, the world of twitter. there's been enough press about the trump-tillerson relationship being somewhat rocky, i don't think this will come as a massive shock. when things like this happen, it is somewhat unsettling. people have begun to build a relationship with rex tillerson. i heard from some folks in munich that there's been so much press about how this secretary of state and the president were not of one mind on so many issues that they were beginning to wonder is it even worth h having a relationship there. having a secretary of state that is of one m

the absence of rex tillerson a big loss to us foreign policy. i think so because he basically he and secretary mabus have been able to calm a lot of the people around the world when the president would make these. statements that he did not have a lot of thought behind them or did not understand you know the interests of the other countries for example the latest on the tyrants you would have hoped that journalists and would be over there dealing with the european union to prevent you know having a trade war or shoring our nato allies that the you know the president still supported or article five so this is i think you know he and madison basically been calming down a lot of the people around the world. not overreacting to the president's actions whether it's mexico australia the problems that he have so it's going to be very hard because pompei of style is a lot like trump's old be very hard for him to you know really act as a diplomat in chief what do you reckon to reckon it was a matter of rex tillerson trying in the town and saying i've had

i, rex wayne tillerson, do solemnly swear... in, then seen as one of the grown—ups of the administration. but his fate was probably sealed last october when it was reported he called donald trump a moron, an accusation he didn't exactly deny. i'm not going to deal with petty stuff like that. i mean, this is what i don't understand about washington. again, you know, i'm not from this place, but the places i come from, we don't deal with that kind of petty nonsense. then there was the public undermining of the secretary of state by the president, sending family to do work that would normally be done by america's chief diplomat, and public shaming on twitter, like this. there's not much love lost between donald trump and rex tillerson, they disagreed on policy and didn't much like each other personally. mike pompeo will be much more to donald trump's taste and it's vital they do get on given the importance of subjects like north korea. but will he be the man who says to the president, "i think you're wrong," as rex tillerson did? t

frankly, i get along well with rex, too. i wish rex a lot of good things. he will be very happy. i think rex will be much happier now. but i really appreciate his service. but with mike, we've had a very good chemistry from the beginning. >> reaction from capitol hill. you pointed it out from nancy pelosi. it's no wonder that the president has trouble attracting high caliber people to his administration when he undercuts and humiliates those he supposedly respects. whenever tillerson's successor goes into meetings, his credibility will be diminished as someone here today and gone today. i'm told that the president made the decision now as a result of the announcement last thursday about his potential meeting with kim jong-un. the president wanted a new team in place for any meetings, potential negotiations and as well since over the next nine months the president plans on restructuring trade deals. he got involved in that, the u.s. secretary of state and the commerce department. but remember, harris, last october, when we were saying that tillerson probably wouldn't be here long

rex is a very good man, i like rex a lot. i really appreciate his commitment and his service, and i'll be speaking to rex over a long period of time. >> president trump there talking about the differences he had with rex tillerson, also praised the incoming secretary of state as nominee for secretary of state mike pompeo, cia director. i'm here with cecilia vega. cecilia, this is something we haven't really seen before, the president announcing the firing of the secretary of state before telling him. >> and that was just before he traveled to california. make no bones, there is bad blood between these two men and it is longstanding. they have not been happy with each other. the president said iran had a deal with president kim jong-un. secretary tillerson used the word moron to describe president trump. this is a long time coming. the fact that it happened now is a complete surprise. let's talk about the chaos involving this white house right now. this is now the seventh senior administration official to leave this white hous

i will be speaking to rex over a lonperiod of time. i wish rex a lot of things. think he will be very happy. i think rex will be much happier now. >> trevor: trump is right, rex tillerson will be much happier now. everyone who leaves the white house ends up happier. just look at this guy, this guy or this guy, and especially this guy. why are you so happy, obama? we're dying over here! we have been kite surfing for two years. but tillerson will be happier than most because, don't forget, he never wanted the job in a first place. >> he's a reluctant secretary of state to begin with. he's on the record saying i really didn't want the job, my wife asked me to do it. >> trevor: some wives ask their man to take out the garbage, this wife asked tillerson to live in it. that's the most devoted husband. the dopest thing for wife to brag about. ohics your husband brought you flowers? my husband works for trump because i asked. but daises are cute, too. you do you, girl. he had no experience, and he was the only cabinet member with a resting i have shit on my shoe face. th

so rex tillerson is howe out. -- is well. so rex tillerson is howe out. —— is out.y and pointing the finger at the russians, something the white house had notably dodged, significantly dodged earlier. there have been other clashes between the two men. rex tillerson refused to deny he called the president a moron. and in north korea we have a situation where months ago the president told rex tillerson he was wasting his time with north korea, but the president is on the verge of meeting kim jong—un. it but the president is on the verge of meeting kimjong—un. it is a saga, but it seems the president has the man he trusts, mike pompeo as his secretary of state in his cabinet. can we talk about that? because mike pompeo a very different kind of person with a different kind of ideology, what can we expect? well he is the person that largely daily does the president‘s briefing. so they have got close and they have a similar world view. particularly on things like iran. ers he he is strong on keeping guantanamo bay open. and also he has a robust view on things like some of

rex tillerson now out as secretary of state. the president wants cia director mike pompeo to replace him. tillerson did get a heads-up friday night that this might be in the works but he found out it was done and that he was out when most of the world did. when this "you're fired" tweet hit the internet. >> ta talk of firing rex goes back months. another top official out at a time of dizzying personnel chaos in the west wing and across the administration. the president says pompeo is a better fit. >> we're always on the same wavelength. the relationship has been very good and that's what i need as secretary of state. i respect his intellect, i respect the process that we've all gone through together. we have a very good relationship for whatever reason, chemistry, whatever it is. why do people get along? i've always right from the beginning from day one, i've gotten along well with mike pompeo. >> cnn's jeff zeleny live four s at the white house. jeff n one sense this is a big surprise, in another sense, it's a surprise. >> repo

what do we know so far about the rex tillerson ouster ? we hear the state department saying the secretary did not speak to the president and was unaware of the reason but he is grateful for the opportunity to serve. we also know he cut his trip to africa short. when did he find out? >> we are still trying to sort out some of that. it's clear the state department has told us that tillerson had no idea this was coming. he stepped off a plane after a weeklong trip in africa at 4:00 a.m. this morning. the president's tweet when out before 9:00 a.m. so there was no indication except the trip had been cut short. tillerson said he was ill at one point of the trip and he ended the trip by about a day. his staff is telling us they had no idea this was coming now. as you said, there have been rumors about this going back months. it seems that recently, tillerson was on more solid footing. it's not clear what the spark for that was. it follows all wave of departures and turmoil among trumps close aides. in viewse a shift having someone like mike pomp

i think rex is a great american. i think he worked hard and did some good things, but there wasn't the rapport with the president. mike is obviously very well qualified. i think the cia is actually good preparation because he really understands the hot spot thes even better now. but he has a very good rapport with the president. when mike is over in, say, the koreas or over dealing with russia or the middle east, i think people are going to know that he speaks for the president. >> jon: there were plenty of indications that tillerson and the president weren't necessarily on the same page. tillerson was advocating for more direct talks with pyongyang over north korea's nuclear program. the president put out that tweet saying, stop it, rex, you're wasting your time. then just more recently, mr. tillerson was saying, hey, we're not ready for talking with north korea, the ground has not been laid yet. all of a sudden, the president comes out and says, yeah, i'm going to meet with kim jong-un. especially on the north kore

there was tension with rex tillerson from the very beginning. rex tillerson always said that he was not a creature of washington. he didn't understand it. he didn't really fit in there and he wore that as a badge of honor. on the policy standpoint, when it comes to the iran deal, there was, as i understand it, differences from what the president wanted to do and what rex tillerson is trying to do to thread the needle, to see if he can keep the europeans on board but meet with what the president wanted to do, which is to drastically change the deal that obama signed. is that at the heart of this? >> it's one of the issues that is a tension. the president mentioned it. the iran deal is on its last legs. if you look at the people in key positions here, you have nikki haley, who is advocated for the u.s. to pull out. mike pompeo has been the same since being on the intelligence committee. he has all along said there's no positives to the iran nuclear deal. it's only jim mattis of defense that has suggested that the u.s. stay in it. it's a big, big i

foreign policy which is much more aggressive than it was under rex tillerson to the extent that rex tillerson could actually shape the u.s. foreign policy because the main player in all of this is of course donald trump the come from. the people who meet mike from pale might have is that there's a much bigger chance that what my computer tells them really reflects the views of the on the trunk that wasn't always the case with rex tillerson seven leadership how then should the german government prepared to deal with these changes and a new and different secretary of state i think the government should be very clear in their positions even if they are against the positions of the new secretary of state if you think about it you know. he is totally against it our government is in favor of it or if you think about the situation in north korea. mr tillotson was against regime change in north korea but mr pompeo is in favor of it or if you talk about guantanamo he wants to have fun tunnel open and our government is against that so i expect from our government that they are very clear in their posit

rex tillerson. tom countryman, i'm coming to you next. >>> i received a call today from the president of the united states a little after noontime from air force one and i've spoken to chief of staff kelly. clarity in the days ahead what is most important is to ensure an order ly and smooth transition during the time that the country continues to face significant policy and national security challenges. as such, effective at the end of the day, i'm delegating all responsibilities of the office of the secretary to deputy secretary of state solomon. my commission as secretary of state will terminate at midnight march 31st. between now and then, i will address a few administrative matters related to my departure and work towards a smooth and orderly transition for secretary of state designate mike pompeo. i'm encouraging my policy planning team and undersecretaries and assistant secretaries, those confirmed, as well as those in acting positions, to remain at their post, to continue our mission at the s

president, what did you tell rex tillerson >> rex and i have been talking about this for a long time we got along actually quite well but we disagreed on things when you look at the iran deal, i think it is terrible, i guess he figured it was okay i want to break it or do something and he felt differently. we were not really thinking the same with mike pompeo we have similar thought process. i think it is going to go very well rex is a very good man i like rex a lot i really appreciate his commitment and service and i will be speaking to rex over a long period of time. >> mr. president -- >> i cannot hear you >> no, i really didn't discuss it with him honestly i made that decision by myself, rex was not as you know in this country. i made the north korea decisions with consultations with many people but i made that decision by myself. >> i actually got along well with rex but it was a different mind set and different thinking. what say it again i respect his intellect and i respect the process that we have all gone through together. we have a good relationship for whatever reasons an

i wish rex tillerson well and as far as rex tillerson is concerned i very much appreciate his commitment that his service and i wish him well rex and i had been talking about this for a long time. we got along actually quite well but we disagreed on what you look at the iran deal i think it's terrible i guess it was ok i wanted the break it or do something and he felt a little bit differently so we were not really thinking that. he's going to a white house correspondent can really help it so can be not the first time profile casualty for this administration but the way he was fired seems to be taking be brutal. right and as you pointed out we just heard from the president there where he said he and rex tillerson had discussed this well that certainly isn't the case in terms of a statement coming from the state department where in fact the the statement reads the secretary did not speak to the present this morning and is unaware of the reason that he was fired so you're right this is particularly brutal and reminiscent of the firing of james komi you'll recall also that was done on social

. >> rex is a very good man. i like rex a lot. i really appreciate his commitment to his service and i'll be speaking to rex over a long period of time. >> cnn's jeff zeleny is at the white house. jeff, tell us how all of this played out there. >> well, we heard the president there saying i'll be speaking to rex tillerson for a long period of time. he did not speak to his secretary of state before doing this. at least the president did not directly. we are getting a bigger picture of how exactly this unfolded. we're learning that last friday the chief of staff here at the white house, john kelly, reached out to the secretary of state rex tillerson, who is traveling in africa and told him that the president had essentially reached the end of the line here with him and he was going to replace him. but was not told any timing specifically of when that would happen. so rex tillerson, the secretary of state, flew back to the u.s. early from his trip to africa, not knowing the timing of this. of course, his demise has been rumored and l

he thanks rex tillerson for his service.e seen there will bea reshuffling we have seen there will be a new director of the cia that will be the first woman so chosen so congratulations to all, says president trump. she is currently deputy director of the cia. so, something of a reshuffle at the department of state there as rex tillerson is relieved of his duties. this is something that had essentially been on the cards for some time. you can see mike pompeo there and he will take over. this has been mooted for some time, even backin has been mooted for some time, even back in november. various us papers have suggested that mike pompeo was lined up to replace rex tillerson who has various spats and areas of disagreement with the president. a suggestion from white house internal sources was that president trump wa nted sources was that president trump wanted a new team ahead of his planned talks with north korea and various trade negotiations that were coming. the suggestion is that mike pompeo is more hardline and hawkish and

laura: rex tillerson speaking earlier. the buildup up to his departure as secretary of stats been a long one. our north america editor jon sopel explains. asjon: rex tillerson wlying back overnight to washington from a long trip to africa whenb the normallytoned up secretary of state cut loosets with journal but unbeknown to him, the president had signed his death warrant, and it would be death by tweet. mike pompeo, director of the a, will become our new secretary of state -- he will do a fantastic job. thank you to rex tillerson for his service." but tillerson isn't on twitter, ell tocruciatingly, it his chief of staff to ring him to inform him of his demise. only this after the event from the president. president trump: i wish rex a lot of good ththgs. k he is going to be very happy. i think rex will be much happier now, but i really appreciate his service. jon: tillerson'hate was le-- fate was probably sa long time ago when he called to ime president a moron, a c that the secretary of state did not exactly deny. secret

the president dumps rex tillerson as secretary of state.nd the president still hasn't replaced the last big name to leave his administration could ralarry kudlow be the replacement for gary cohn? we're following all the personnel me moves at the white house. eyomfa a fioth ce stndurus if we took legendary... and made it liberating. we took safe... and made it daring. we took intelligent, and made it utterly irresistible. we took the most advanced e-class ever... and made the most exciting e-class ever. the 2018 e-class coupe and sedan. lease the e300 sedan for $569 a month at your local mercedes-benz dealer. mercedes-benz. the best or nothing. . >>> lear here is update. we begin if n. washington where 7 thur 7,000 pairs of shoes are outside the u.s. capitol they represent children killed by gun violence since sandy hook the organizers say they want to bring the call for gun control to the doorstep of congress. the shoes will then be donated >>> palestinian prime minister surviving an attack in gaza after a roadside bomb struck his convoy he

i wish rex tillerson well and as far as rex tillerson is concerned i very much appreciate his commitment that his service and i wish him well rex and i had been talking about this for a long time we we got along actually quite well but we disagreed on thing when you look at the iran deal i think it's terrible i guess he says it was ok i wanted he's a great kid or do something and he felt a little bit differently so we were not really thinking the same. as going to white house correspondent can really help it so it's not the first high profile casualty that this administration has had been the way he was fired appears to be particularly brutal. if you think hillary brutal and reminiscent of the firing of the former f.b.i. director james comey who also was kind of blindsided by the news that he was no longer in his role this is something that happened to rex tillerson although you heard the president there saying that this had been discussed many times a press statement too by the state department indicates just the opposite the fact that that rex tillerson didn't know he was being fired a