Mike Pompeo’s nomination to be the next Secretary of State was already in trouble in the Senate Foreign Relations Committee when Trump decided to help his nominee by touting how well he gets along with Kim Jong-un.
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After trying to put pressure on Rand Paul, who has the backbone of a wet dishcloth to vote for Pompeo, Trump said, “Mike Pompeo will go down as one of the great secretary of states. And by the way, he just left North Korea, had a great meeting with Kim Jong-un, and got along with him really well, really great. And he’s that kind of a guy. He’s very smart but he gets along with people. So I think that Mike will be in good shape. We’ll see what happens. You know, a lot of people are predicting other things. But I have a feeling it’s going to work out very well. And I think our country really needs him. He’s going to be a great leader.”
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Trump’s big sell point for Pompeo is that he gets along great with brutal dictators who starve and kill their own people. That was what Trump thought made Pompeo qualified to be Secretary of State. Mike Pompeo refused to answer questions about the Russia scandal and Russian election meddling during his confirmation hearing. Pompeo is not qualified to be secretary of state, and it appears that the only reason that Trump nominated him was because he liked him.
The Senate Foreign Relations Committee should vote down the Pompeo nomination and force Trump to nominate someone who is qualified to be the nation’s top diplomat. When the best pitch that Trump can give is that Pompeo is great with murderous dictators, it’s time to find a new nominee.
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Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
