And there goes Rex

It was going to happen, all their official denials nothwithstanding.  Tillerson's been at odds with Trump time after time, including on the recent tariffs. The last straw might have been when Rex recently said he believed that Russia was involved in poisoning people in England. The official White House position condemned the attack, but pointedly refused to blame Russia.  Tillerson had to know he was pushing his luck on that one.

He sees everything as a contest with winners and losers, doesn't he? Congratulations, winners! And you, too, Rex. Now get out of the way. Pompeo will happily do His Lordship's bidding.

I absolutely agree with Glenn on that.

Trump made sure to let us know Tillerson was fired, and didn't leave voluntarily.



I wondered why Tillerson cut his trip to Africa short.  And what that illness was. I didn't post about or question it too long, thinking that I was simply having a knee-jerk conspiracy response to something else in this inept, pathetic and devious administration.  This should prove to me that I can never go wrong assuming the worst.

Perhaps Tillerson was brought home early to be fired, and his response on the poisoning was actually a last dig at Trump.  Who knows?  But with this administration, you can be sure a cigar is never just a cigar.

A good fit for a president who wants to torture more people and execute others.

IN MAY 2013, the Washington Post’s Greg Miller reported that the head of the CIA’s clandestine service was being shifted out of that position as a result of “a management shake-up” by then-Director John Brennan.

[...]

As Miller put it, she was “directly involved in its controversial interrogation program” and had an “extensive role” in torturing detainees. Even more troubling, she “had run a secret prison in Thailand” — part of the CIA’s network of “black sites” — “where two detainees were subjected to waterboarding and other harsh techniques.” The Senate Intelligence Committee’s report on torture also detailed the central role she played in the particularly gruesome torture of detainee Abu Zubaydah.

Beyond all that, she played a vital role in the destruction of interrogation videotapes that showed the torture of detainees both at the black site she ran and other secret agency locations. [...] A special prosecutor and grand jury investigated those actions but ultimately chose not to prosecute.

  Glenn Greenwald

Gina may have to prove her chops soon.  She was number 2 at CIA, below Pompeo, and Trump may have given her the number 1 job just because he hasn't actually thought about who he might put in that position.

And, by the way, do you think Mike Pompeo will fill some of those positions Tillerson let dissolve?



...but hey, do what you want...you will anyway.

UPDATE 3/16:



UPDATE 3/17: