President-elect Trump’s selection of Exxon Mobil CEO Rex Tillerson for secretary of state is “not particularly surprising” considering his posture toward Russia during the election season, the White House said Tuesday.
“Generally, throughout his campaign, the president-elect indicated his intent if elected to pursue warmer relations with Russia,” White House press secretary Josh Earnest told reporters.
“So what better way to do that than to choose somebody who was awarded an Order of Friendship award from [Russian President] Vladimir Putin,” he added.
Earnest said Tillerson’s nomination was “not a particularly surprising or unexpected development,” but that he is likely to face a tough confirmation hearing in the Senate.
“I suspect there will be many members of Congress in both parties that have some questions about that,” he said, in reference to Tillerson’s ties to Moscow.
“Tillerson is a seasoned business executive and he’s got some skills in answering tough questions in public, and I expect he’ll put them to use in these [hearings],” Earnest added.
