Republican senator Marco Rubio told reporters Monday he is still mulling whether to support secretary of state nominee Rex Tillerson, a decision that could bode ill for the former Exxon Mobil CEO’s confirmation hopes.
The Tampa Bay Times has the story:
Rubio grilled Tillerson at length during a hearing last week, keying on the latter’s views of Russia and Vladimir Putin. Were Rubio to vote against Tillerson’s nomination in committee, it could make for an embarrassing and uncomfortable process moving forward. Tillerson could still receive a vote before the full Senate, but he would potentially do so without the approval of the committee of oversight—Republicans hold just a one-seat majority on the foreign relations panel—and with key GOP hawks standing in his way. In addition to Rubio, Sens. Lindsey Graham and John McCain have expressed reservations about Tillerson. Together, their votes could tip the nomination against him.
