donald trump in announcing that tillerson was going to be leaving office said that he disagreed with tillerson about iran policy so that was a key factor is not going to disagree with pompei o and that's why the europeans are so frightened and it's why one hundred foreign policy experts including fifty retired military officials said to trump wrote a letter saying we should not break this deal with iran it's in the united states interest it's a good deal and iran has been following it clearly pompei o is among the real hawks when it comes to iran policy he's going to reinforce donald trump's worst tendencies along with john bolton the same thing with north korea so north korea right now looks very very positive but we know that between now and the time when this deal is concluded there's a hundred ways that it could blow up every day if pompei o wants to be a moderating force a north korea that's great i would hope it will also be a moderating force when it comes to iran but i doubt it. exclusive video from yemen r.t. has spoken to the bridegroom who survived a saudi led earth strike

tillerson essentially confirmed it. powell and mcmaster denied it.o i do think that the element of truth within the administration always was a problem for rex tillerson. >> do you think tillerson is going to want to talk more about his time and maybe what the president said to vladimir putin during the meetings? do you think we'll ever hear about that? >> frex wrex tillerson was the male at the top of the most powerful corporation in the world, exxon-mobil. then he goes into the trump administration and is treated pretty terribly, the way john kelly noted him while he was suffering from -- >> if you need to, look it up. >> that was just disgraceful. he was treated pretty terribly by the administration and by the president himself getting fired by tweet. i think if donald trump didn't want him to talk about what he really thought, then maybe he should have treated him a little bit better. >> what is this going to mean for other people who might leave this administration, other senior officials? i am looking at h.r. mcmaster who might know things -- i

tillerson: thank you, thank you so much, mr. brown, for that kind introduction and i want to thank the general and everyone from bmi for their kind invitation to be a part of this very important day for all of you. i know it is important to you, it is important your families, friends, and so many others who have played a part in supporting you in your journey to this transitional moment in your lives. i know many of you also received your commissions to serve as our newest leaders in all branches of our military only yesterday. i want to thank you for that. not only for your willingness to serve, but the commitment and sacrifice of yourselves and family members that comes with your service. vmi prides itself on its development of citizen soldiers and the act of your committing to this service due to no obligation to serve demonstrates why america's all volunteer armed forces are unmatched by any other fighting force in the world. your willingness to put all on the line for the american idea, our form of democracy and our freedom

before you have secretary tillerson that was really not a voice.was, in fact, against many of the president's approximately se policies and was vocal about that and side lined in many ways and in addition to all of that and the unfilled positions the state department lost its relevance and that's what he means by swagger. i will say as his first official act as secretary of state, he lifted a hiring freeze and that seems like something very small and they do have odd jobs at the embassy and they serve important functions and it's also a way for spouses to get overseas and feel useful and that was a very unpopular move when secretary tillerson froze that. he came in and said i'm unfreezing it and we'll get the state department working again and he has to fill some of these positions and he did ask the president to come over and it was a joint decision according to sources close to him to show the president's support for the diplomat diplomatic corps, and he will improve the president's respect for the state department and that's what sources close t

tillerson remained isolated. but the fact is that tillerson put on a job freeze.e lifted the job be freeze. they will begin hiring people. of course he has to get them vetted and there is the white house personnel office that said no never trumpers can ever be in the state department and that is a lot of foreign service people, a lot of diplomats. i think he may be going the other direction so we may have lost out here. i don't have a wireless microphone. but he is now surrounded by very frustrated diplomats who have spent the last 16 months not being listened to. and i think that is the main thing that he tries to bring to it. i would note one word of caution, the president in the rose garden when rex tillerson -- when mike pompeo was there as a west point graduate of the class of 1986, first in his class, was there just now for the commanders in chief trophy presentation at the rose garden and the president said, you know, mike pompeo has gotten a lot of publicity. he doesn't want to get too much publicity because that is not something that you want in the orbit

donald trump in announcing that tillerson was going to be leaving office said that he disagreed with tillerson about iran policy so that was a key factor is not going to disagree with pompei o and that's why the europeans are so frightened and it's why one hundred foreign policy experts including fifty retired military officials said to trump wrote a letter saying we should not break this deal with iran it's in the united states interest it's a good deal and iran has been following it clearly pompei o is among the real hawks when it comes to iran policy he's going to reinforce donald trump's worst tendencies along with john bolton the same thing with north korea so north korea right now looks very very positive but we know that between now and the time when this deal is concluded there's a hundred ways that it could blow up every day if pompei zero wants to be a moderating force a north korea that's great i will hope it will also be a moderating force when it comes to iran but i doubt it can a big changes ahead for the boy scouts of america and it's causing a major row of gender poli

the words of secretary tillerson yesterday, former secretary tillerson, i might say, the words of secretary tillerson were, quote, if our leaders seek to conceal the truth, will we as a people become accepting of alternative realities that are no longer ground in fact, then we as american citizens are on the pathway to relinquishing our freedom. he's exactly right. when distortions, lies, intimidation come repeatedly from the other side in some conservative news media and that becomes the accepted way and it's just he said, she said, when one side is blatantly distorting and lying and that becomes accepted, our democracy is at risk. we're a beautiful thing here. it's founded on fact, real facts. and what we have seen from the president and some of his allies makes you worry about the future of this democracy, the way they are behaving. now, ultimately i have firm belief that they will not succeed. the founding fathers were geniuses, geniuses, and they set up a system of checks and balances that we read about in our classes and study, but it's almost mystical. it always rises to the occasion

that was rex tillerson.ow they are trying to make it seem as pompeo is irrelevant as well because they called tillerson irrelevant. even if he did not get the hostage release, it's the job of the sector estate to go to these overseas missions traveling thousands of miles away, as a book with the times" puts it, why wouldn't they mention that? >> it was mentioned in the story that mike pompeo was going to -- vehicle why wouldn't they put two and two together? obviously he's there for a very important mission, this upcoming north korea summit. >> that's exactly right. the president enjoyed taking a swipe at "the new york times." it reflects the medias fixation with optics. the suggestion is it's more important for him to be here in washington on the decision that had already been made that was being announced by the president said to be on an airplane going to pyongyang to talk about, you know, possible discernment of north korea. "the times" has a very different story today that all of this about president tr

donald trump in announcing that tillerson was going to be leaving office said that he disagreed with tillerson about iran policy so that was a key factor is not going to disagree with pompei o and that's why the europeans are so frightened and it's why one hundred foreign policy experts including fifty retired military officials said to trump wrote a letter saying we should not break this deal with iran it's in the united states interest it's a good deal and iran has been following it clearly pompei o is among the real hawks when it comes to iran policy he's going to reinforce donald trump's worst tendencies along with john bolton the same thing with north korea so north korea right now looks very very positive but we know that between now and the time when this deal is concluded there's a hundred ways that it could blow up every day if pompei o wants to be a moderating force a north korea that's great i would hope he will also be a moderating force when it comes to iran but i doubt it the news continues in one thousand. local blogs sell you on the idea that dropping bombs brings pol

brexitd by another, tillerson, at virginia military institute. then, defense secretary james the canadian the prime minister justin trudeau speaking to nyu graduates. that was great. thank you. thank you very much. thanks everybody. thank you. i am so delighted to be here. sorry we are not outside but this makes it cozy. thank the president and the dean. alex, a razorback fan from little rock, arkansas, for getting us started. forks to alexis and josh your comments and introduction. thanks to all of the family and friends here today for allowing me to share this happy occasion. to everyoneernoon joining us by a from around campus. , congratulations to the class of 2018. , am thrilled for all of you even the three of you who live in michigan and did not request or absentee ballots in time. [applause] but before i go any further, i want to be sure, did the students from the new colleges make it here? [cheering] i worried that your flights -- bebe delayed party delayed. invited me to be your speaker. i see looking out at you that you are following t

tillerson: thank you, thank you so much, mr. brown, for that kind introduction and i want to thank the general and everyone from bmi for their kind invitation to be a part of this important day for all of you. it is important to you, it is important your families, friends, and so many others who played a part in supporting you in your journey to this transitional moment in your lives. i know many of you also received your commissions to serve as our newest leaders in all branches of our military only yesterday. i want to thank you fo

donald trump in announcing that tillerson was going to be leaving office said that he disagreed with tillerson about iran policy so that was a key factor is not going to disagree with pompei o and that's why the europeans are so frightened it's why one hundred foreign policy experts including fifty retired military officials said to trump wrote a letter saying we should not break this deal with iran it's in the united states interest it's a good deal and iran has been following it clearly pompei o is among the real hawks when it comes to iran policy he's going to reinforce donald trump's worst tendencies along with john bolton the same thing with north korea so north korea right now looks very very positive but we know that between now and the time when this deal is concluded there's a hundred ways that it could blow up every day if pompei o wants to be a moderating force a north korea that's great i hope he will also be a moderating force when it comes to iran but i doubt it. exclusive video from yemen now as r.t. has spoken to the groom who survived a sound he led air strike that h

secretary tillerson worked more behind the scenes. he had limited success at that. but he didn't take on big projects. his main project, such as it was, was to reform the state lldepartment and make it s and arguably weaker. secretary pompeo, what is his firspriority going to be? what issues is he going to dig into? we know the inbox -- iran, north korea, china,ae i what other issues is he going to take on? jane: what would you like him to take on? derek: navigating the way out of is corner the administration o has put itself igarding the iranian nuclear deal. it is a deal that can be fixed and withdrawing from the deal m would betake. if the united states chooses to withdraw from the deal as it is signaling it will, this would be a huge test for secretary pompeo. how does he navigate that? he will get a lot of opposition. d obviously, of course, north korea. jane: do you think diplomacy, that word, is going to make a comeback? derek: for now the state departments getting its swagger back, but the question is how long this will last, and if president trump is intere

saying that he was more open than tillerson ever was pump a i did however stress the concept of american exceptionalism which is generally considered controversial in some circles i talked in my my hearing about the fact that this nation is so exceptional and so incredibly blessed this is a unique exceptional country russia is unique but not exceptional and he's wasting no time taking the reins of us predecessor my pompei has spent his first days as secretary of state showing support to israel and that was just before israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu made from an lavatory claims against iran accusing the country of lying about a secret nuclear weapons program for years but pompei was tough stance on iran and other supposedly hostile states aren't new. i can't think of a thing that has put america in a better position as a result of this deal every has single action the iranians have taken has been bolder and starker than the ones they took before the agreement. a very real danger they are ever closer to having the capacity to hold america risk with a nuclear weapon. and it is di

taking a page from rex tillerson who called the president a moron and never recovered. ended up being fired. four witnesses say john kelly has called mr. trump an idiot on multiple occasions. the chief of staff pushing back hours after saying in part i spend more time with the president than anyone else and we have an incredibly candid and strong relationship. he knows where i stand and he and i know this story is total bs. president trump weighing in on twitter writing the fake news is going crazy making up false stories and using only unnamed sources who don't exist. joining me nbc white house correspondent kristen welker and nbc national political reporter. kristen, first to you on whether or not john kelly gets passed this given he was already on thin ice no matter what they say. >> reporter: it's a good question and remains to be seen. you saw the very firm pushback from the chief of staff and from the president i wouldn't be surprised if sarah sanders pushes back vigorously from the podium today. we know, based on our conversations with a number of current and for

. >> would mike pompeo have any better chance of getting a never trumper through than rex tillerson did? >> i wouldn't sigh he has a good chance right now, but over time hemight have a better chance and the reason for that is he has a pretty goothrelationship he president and he might be able to convince the president that look, some of these guys are really expert and even though they signed those letters, stay during the campaign, they wantoerve you now. >> what about the career diplomats and where they're placed and how they're hasitioned compared to the appointmentspompeo could atke or the ones that deserve senate confin? >> every administration has a certain level of political appointees and then the career appointees. in the past, presidents have -- about 30% have gone to political appointees and the other 70% have been drawn from career diplomatic ranks. but the career foreign service really hopes that pompeo turns to them whenever possible to fill some of these top positions, especially when it comes to positions like undersecretary for political affairs, or the director general

this was important especially after the sort of the way he dealt with tillerson. the way he dealt with mcmaster, where he was contradicting where he was saying. it was a big signal being sent out standing behind him. but, and there's always a but, we'll know when the rubber hits the road. when the first time pompeo recognizing the realities of his job finds himself in a place saying something that contradicts what the president says. how they behave when that happens, that's when we'll know how close they are. or when the president overrules him and says something in public that contradicts what pompeo says. does pompeo move the president quietly closer to his position or simply agree with the president? that's when we'll understand how much power this secretary of state has. >> i just think back to when rex tillerson was first holding the position, sort of that shadow secretary of state role that president trump put jared kushner in. when was the last time you heard president trump talk about jared kushner? no longer does mike pompeo have the overhang of the pres

those who watched tillerson's dismissal were not. virginia. >> if our leaders seek to conceal the truth or we as people become accepting of alternative realities that are no longer grounded in facts, then we as american citizens are on a pathway to relinquishing our freedom. a responsibility of every american citizen to each other is to preserve and protect our freedom by recognizing what truth is and is not, what a fact is and is not, and begin by holding ourselves accountable to truthfulness and demand our pursuit of america's future be fact-based, not based on wishful thinking, not hoped-for outcomes made in shallow promises. >> interesting words today from the commencement speaker at the virginia military institute, former secretary of state rex tillerson. that's our broadcast for tonight. thank you so much for being here with us. good night from nbc news headquarters in new york. >>> busy day today and news still breaking tonight. let's get right to it. the president released his financial disclosure form today in which he admit

tillerson: thank you, thank you so much, mr. brown, for that kind introduction and i want to thank the general and everyone from bmi for their kind invitation to be a part of this important day for all of you.

that said there is a lot of excitement about the opening salvo statements from rex tillerson, too. while the rhetoric sounds good now, we have to wait and see if mike pompeo will pull out of this nose dive as so many career officials hope that he will. >> so, you know, you mention so many vital areas being bereft of the foreign service personnel. north korea is one of them, north and south korea. mike pompeo has come back to the united states with the three detained korean americans in north korea. that obviously is a good will gesture on the brink of a summit between the two leaders. where do you think this could lead, based on all that you have learned from the state department and in the wake of president trump pulling out of the iran deal? >> this book confronts in frank terms the prospect of this -lea north korea issue. there are very legitimate reasons why we have said no as a nation to that kind of meeting before. you really run the risk of legitimatizing north korea as a nuclear power. history shows us and a lot of this history of negotiations around north korea is laid out

clinton, rex tillerson, defense secretary james mattis and canadian prime ministers justin trudeau. that is coming up tonight. more all week long at 8:00 eastern. ahead of next week's return of the house and senate, we will feature a profile with mark short, the energy coming up on sunday, 7:30 eastern. he will talk about his time working for them congress and mike pence and is efforts working with congress for president trump. coming up sunday at 7:30 p.m. eastern [crowd talking]

eastern, tillerson,nton, rex james mattis, and canadian prime minister justin trudeau. thursday at 8:00 p.m. eastern, apple ceo tim cook, governor john tillerson, james mattis, and kasich, govere brown, and congressman luis gutierrez. and on friday at 8:00 p.m. eastern, jimmy carter, betsy devos, mark meadows, and atlanta mayor keisha lance bottoms. and onek in primetime, the free c-span radio app. announcer: this weekend on "afterwords," james clapper with his book "facts and fears: hard truths from a life in intelligence." he is interviewed by democrat jim hans. >> what are the weaknesses the ic has today? what are the changes that guys like you and me need to think about for the next, 10, 20 years in intelligence? >> i think a weakness that the 9/11 commission came out with was the fact that the community wasn't as integrated and collaborative as it needed to be. so they recommended the creation a a leadership position for full-time job of fostering and promoting integration across the multiple components of the intelligence community. at one point in the run-up to t

you know like pump ale is making a very real effort to separate himself from rex tillerson he spoke toforeign service employees at the state department he said he wants this department to get its swagger back you know that it strikes me that the only way that works is number one those positions have to be filled ambassadors have to be out there assistant secretaries have to be appointed you know these positions have to be filled and second i would suggest listening to these people listening to people at state you know they didn't feel that rex tillerson took them seriously he wasn't interested in what they thought it sounds to me like among michael pompei oh at least is suggesting he's going to be much more active in relying upon the department he has to follow through but it's certainly a very different start than we got under rex tillerson that rhonda thank you very much indeed for you analysis thank you you're welcome and a white house lawyer representing president trump in the russia probe is retiring at the end of the month of the president's legal team for a special counsel inves

. >>> rex tillerson is speaking publicly for the first time since being fired by president trump.on told graduates at the virginia military institute that america is facing a crisis of ethics and integrity. he cautioned that even small exaggerations of fact are a problem. >>> when we as people, a free people go wobbly on the truth, even on what may see the most trivial matters, we go wobbly on america. if our leaders seek to conceal the truth or we as people become accepting of alternative realities that are no longer grounded in facts, then we as american citizens are on a pathway to relinquishing our freedom. >> tillerson said if we don't confront the ethics crisis american democracy as we know it is entering its twilight years. >>> a 25-year-old texas man is facing charges. he's accused of pretending to be a high school student so he could play basketball. now, police say sidney portley posed as a 17-year-old freshman. he was voted his high school district's offensive player of the year. detectives say he enrolled by claiming to be a hurricane harvey refugee. >>> and in the nba

it really marks a huge difference between mike pompeo and his predecessor, rex tillerson.ended to show president trump is really giving his backing to mike pompeo, that there is a report, something that there is a report, something that brings those two men together and when he walked into the news conference today, you got a sense of place that was i suppose being rejuvenated in some way. there has a lwa ys rejuvenated in some way. there has always been this feeling that because rex tillerson and donald trump or not in the same place that really got the impression that the state department felt they were something set apart from the trump administration. today, cheers and applause and a feeling that the state department was at the centre of the trump administration for the first time and that coincides with foreign policy becoming ever more important with north korea approaching, the iran nuclear deal and syria and russia as well, very important for the trump administration see really get the feeling that mike pompeo is going to be an important man here and an important m

tillerson was going to be leaving office said that he disagreed with tillerson about around policy so that was a key factor is not going to disagree with pump a zero and that's why the europeans are so frightened it's why one hundred foreign policy experts including fifty retired military officials said to trump wrote a letter saying we should not break this deal with iran it's in the united states interest it's a good deal and iran has been following it clearly pompei o is among the real hawks when it comes to iran policy he's going to reinforce donald trump's worst tendencies along with john bolton the same thing with north korea so north korea right now looks very very positive but we know that between now and the time when this deal is concluded there's a hundred ways that it could blow up every day of pompei zero wants to be a moderating force a north korea that's great i will hope he will also be a moderating force when it comes to iran but i doubt it. exclusive video from yemen now as r.t. has spoken to the bridegroom who survived a saudi led as strike that hit his wedding part

rex tillerson was for that, but then seemed to back off. that seemed to be a major bone of contention between the president and the former secretary of state. so these talks that could happen between kim jong-un and president trump, very much could be accredited to mike pompeo even though he was just confirmed a week ago. >> if they work. if they work, he goes down as one of the finest because of the nature of the threat. if they don't work, not so much. obviously -- and the devil will come in the details. we're about to find out. i suspect -- one of the things that is striking that pompeo shows this sort of confidence that echos trump. he has clearly -- they have information beyond what we have seen that the north koreans are actually somewhat more serious about this than perhaps those more skeptical observers will say. we shall see. the test in the few days following the president's meeting with kim jong-un, the inspectors are allowed in. if that happens, pompeo is on his way to a peace prize podium. >> and he's also, by the way, i have t

for whatever reason rex tillerson just wasn't able to get there with donald trump.ble to convince world leaders he was negotiating on behalf of the president of the united states. so that is a huge advantage that pompeo will have we'll see how it all plays out these relationships can be delicate and there are just huge stakes here about the north korea and iran >> huge stakes is right, eamon thank you for bringing us that eamon javers in d.c. markets are about to close in the uk and continental europe. stocks on the rise after the labor day holiday. exporters getting a lift with the euro near four-month lows as pmi slipped in april, gdp growth slowed in the first quarter. apple's quarterly results giving a boost to the european suppliers, though. denmark's nova nor dismoving higher the maker posting a quarterly profit beat and raising guidance, expressing optimism about it news diabetes drugs the shares up 4% right now, carl. >> when we come back, how apple's cash pile began larger than the combined market caps of twitter, snap, netflix, cbs and tesla. a lot more on

but the thing about a guy like rex tillerson is he's megawealthy, he's not a politician.an. no one has any strings on this guy now. and so you can pretty much say what you want to say, which is the danger in swatting people out the door the way he was sent packing. i mean, he wasn't septembnt in pleasant manner. he was treated in a rough manner and rough way. what you have out there is a disgruntled former employee who no one can control and is going to speak his mind. i wasn't surprised at all to hear what he had to say. >> no skorned shade like rich white people skorned shade. >> that's country club republican shade, simone. it wouldn't measure up to our standards, but he's doing all he can, man. >> oh, my gosh, this show, this crazy show. >> what was the question? >> he said americans have to demand our future be fact based. that seems pretty -- it seems pretty straightforward. in this climate, that's difficult to do, right? >> a year and a half late and a few dollars short, rex, really, where have you been for the 16 months that you were part of this lying pack of you

tillerson did not mention the president by name, but you decide. respect for truth is paramount to democracy. >> if our leaders seek to conceal the truth or we become accepting of alternative realities that are no longer grounded in facts, then we as american citizens are on a pathway to relinquishing our freedom. when we as people, a free people, go wobbly on the truth, even on what may seem the most tri trivial of matters, we go wobbly on america. >> the former secretary said the pursuit of america's future must be fact base and not wishful thinking. >>> tax cuts left corporate america flush with cash. one cheerleader says those companies will spend on themselves. here is bob nardelli. >> i they are reinvesting. they are adding more research and development. in today's world, you innovate or evaporate. >> new numbers back up what he is saying. s&p 500 companies are spending on factories or equipment. capital spending. $166 billion during the first three months of 2018. a 24% jump. capital spending helps the broader economy. biggest spenders like

there is a difference here in this report, we reported the secretary of state rex tillerson referredthe president as a moron, that was something tillerson never denied, never spoke to the president about explicitly to deny it, so certainly a difference here. we both know this president is not someone whos like to be undermined, he doesn't like someone to question his intelligence. and hasn't publicly said anything specifically about john kelly, no vote of confidence there yet. >> didn't he challenge tillerson to an iq test? >> yes, he did. >> three and a half years ago. thanks, kaitlan. great to see you. let's see what happens next. let's bring in editor at large chris cillizza and cnn political analyst washington post white house reporter josh dawsey. this is -- on this episode, this has been a pretty forceful denial from both donald trump and john kelly. what do you make of it? >> i think it is possible that maybe the word idiot wasn't used, but i don't think there is any dispute that john kelly and donald trump are not what they once were. obviously john kelly was touted by donald

steph brought up the point of the moron comment this was uttered by rex tillerson. white house officials are clear the president never got over that comment. of course, tillerson never denied making it. was that the reason he was oous march? >> the white house never acknowledged that. they took nbc to task on that one as well. >> that's right. >> the president has a habit of telling people we're the ones who are lying when we have confirmation these things happen. thank you very much, kristen welker at the white house. >> it's making me question myself. why is my beat morons and idiots? what does it say? >> look at me. >>> coming up next, we're digging into the iran nuclear deal less than two weeks from a major deadline. israel is pressuring the united states to get out. others want the u.s. to stay in. what's the president to do? >> on this loyalty day, i want to say i love working with ali velshi. there's much more ahead. at noon today president trump will present the commander in chief's trophy to the west point football team in the rose garden. make pompeo addre

tillerson has never confirmed or fully denied that he said this. in november buzz feed reported h.r. mcmaster said at a private dinner that trump was an idiot, a dope with the intelligence of a kindergartner. a spokesperson denied mcmaster made the comments. sparks really flew when a tell all book fire and fury came out in january. it quotes the president's top economic adviser calling the president dumb as something that starts with an "s". the white house said it was ridiculous. it quotes others as calling their boss an idiot. priebus claimed he never said it. mnuchin called the book a fake. joining me now is my co-host on velshi and ruhle, stephanie ruh ruhle. earlier today she said i remind her of brad pitt. >> i said to me you're my brad pitt. while i have reported on john kelly calling the president an idiot and rex tillerson calling him a moron, i cannot speak to the other claims out there. >> right. with the moron from rex tillerson, the president, again, tweeted that nbc is lying and the reporting is fake. >> the president can tweet that a

hy the reason it's kim and trump is because they're both one-maho in in administration, rex tillerson couldn't make a decisn. i don't think mike pompeo can. it all comes down to donald trump. >> now at the very beginning of that negotiating process, even though secretary pompeo h been to north korea i guess tce now since we knew he was going to be secretary of sta. kim jong-un get his photo op. he gets to have the handshake with president trump. in theory, the traveling press will be around the -- in the room and around the world people will see him as someone who has the same statue your at the united states. giving that up at the beginning has issues. robert: that's an important point, he's looking for prestige, kim jong-un butlso signaled this week he wants to make sure north korea as a economy. they're struggling and he knows if he can improve trailed and get jobs hear- for h people and get some income, it could change his o stake in power. michael: he could. the question is how far does that vision go? does he want to get the chokehold off so doesn't have to worry about stramp va

and did you interview tillerson after he was fired for the book or before?ny logic, knew that he was going to be fired on some level. maybe that's why he's so frank in this book. i mean, he basically says "i didn't know what i was doing, i wasn't experienced enough for it." yeah, i set out to interview every living secretary of state. i got there in the end, but the problem with writing about this administration is people are fired every five minutes. >> seth: yeah. [ light laughter ] >> so it's like rolling off the presses, and i'm like, "wait, wait, stop the machines! i need to add mike pompeo to this book." [ light laughter ] >> seth: and you managed to. >> and i did. >> seth: and that's interesting -- again, it is very forthright and frank the way tillerson talks about -- it's almost like an exit interview where he admits he deserved to get fired. were you surprised? >> he lays a lot of blame on this white house. i was not surprised because it is apparent to anyone looking at the state department, which i was for this book, that it's become something of

i think in korea, on the korean peninsula and iran and secretary tillerson it sounds like sour grapesou think it is the truth now, why didn't you speak then and it sounds like somebody got fired and is unhappy about it. >> but did you interpret this as a direct shot at president trump. >> yeah i am. but i'm upset. why did you pull the punch? what are you talking about. you are former secretary of state accusing the president of lying. >> i would like to know what you are lying about. is it north korea negotiations, iran or russia? what is it. so i would like him to do a follow up interview because he's speaking to military graduates. >> this is at vmi. >> and these people will likely have a career minute military and may not have a chance to question their commander-in-chief in order to go out and perform a certain task and so rex -- if there is lives you felt compelled to speak about, come back and tell us what they were. >> it would be amazing for the judiciary committee to say we have enough for you to come back and testify before the committee. that would be great to see. >> but d