Secretary of State Rex Tillerson repeatedly turned down requests from the State Department’s security staff to brief him during his first nine months in his role, according to a report.
In order to speak with Tillerson, Bill Miller, the acting secretary for diplomatic security, eventually cited a legal requirement passed by Congress that he have unrestricted access to the secretary of state, said a report from the New York Times.
Miller was granted five minutes to speak with Tillerson, according to former top officials in the Bureau of Diplomatic Security. Afterward, he was dismissed from his position.
Tillerson, who used to be chief executive at Exxon Mobil, has said he intends to reorganize the State Department. He has frozen most hiring and is offering buyouts to some staff. Of the 44 political positions at the State Department, 10 have been filled.
Both Democratic and Republican members of Congress recently have written Tillerson to express their concerns about staff exits.
Tillerson’s spokesman, R. C. Hammond, suggested to the New York Times that the dismissals weren’t having a negative effect.
“There are qualified people who are delivering on America’s diplomatic mission,” Hammond said. “It’s insulting to them every time someone comes up to them and says that the State Department is being gutted.”
Miller did not comment for the story.
