Recently, the mainstream media reported that Secretary of State Rex Tillerson called President Trump “a moron” behind Trump’s back at a Pentagon meeting in late July.
Was this really true? Did Tillerson really refer to our nation’s commander-in-chief by such a demeaning term?
In this clip, Tillerson is interviewed by CNN’s Jake Tapper, who pesters him about whether Tillerson really uttered such a derogatory word. But what Tapper neglects to tell his audience is that the president and the secretary of state are often forced to play “good cop, bad cop” when trying to negotiate with uncooperative nations such as Iran and North Korea. It’s the secretary of state’s job to use diplomacy to solve problems (i.e., the “good cop”), whereas the president can order military action (the “bad cop”).
Therefore, sometimes it’s in the interest of the administration to make other countries believe that there’s more friction between the two men than there actually is. Having a country like North Korea believe that a diplomatic solution to their problems may exist if they only talk to Tillerson and not to President Trump may, in fact, end up working in the U.S.’s favor, even if the media is having a field day over whether the two Americans are really on speaking terms. In fact, this interview may be an attempt by Tillerson to play up such a scenario, if that’s what’s actually transpiring.
Watch, as Tillerson seems like he might have more to say to CNN’s Tapper than he’s letting on.
