Secretary of State Rex Tillerson told senators Tuesday that his views on the Paris climate change deal have not changed now that President Trump had decided to exit the agreement.
“My view didn’t change. My views were heard out,” Tillerson said during a hearing on the fiscal 2018 State Department budget. “I respect that the president heard my views, but I respect the decision he’s taken.”
Tillerson had supported remaining a member of the 197-country pact, and had said after the president’s decision that Trump was walking away from a deal he thought was bad for the U.S. and that he thought the issue was important.
He also urged people the day after the June 1 decision on the Paris Agreement to keep it “in perspective.”
“I don’t think we’re going to change our ongoing efforts to reduce those emissions in the future either, so hopefully people can keep it in perspective,” said Tillerson, who did not attend Trump’s Rose Garden announcement.
The secretary said Tuesday that the president’s decision was “quite deliberative,” in which Trump “took some time to come to his decision, particularly waiting until he had heard from European counterparts in the G7 on it.”
Tillerson and Jared Kushner, Trump’s adviser and son-in-law, had urged the president not to exit the deal. Oil giant Exxon Mobil, where Tillerson had served as CEO, also urged the administration to remain a part of the climate agreement.
