State Department releases human rights report, without Tillerson

The State Department released the 2017 human rights report to Congress on Friday, declaring that “our values are our interests when it comes to human rights” in a prefatory note.

“Promoting human rights and democratic governance is a core element of U.S. foreign policy,” Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s preface said. “These values form an essential foundation of stable, secure, and functioning societies. Standing up for human rights and democracy is not just a moral imperative but is in the best interests of the United States in making the world more stable and secure.”