The ‘non-Washington’ nominee for Secretary of State Rex Tillerson knows how to do win-win deals and could put make the US respected again but not at the cost of the relationship with other countries, experts told RT.
‘Trump’s thinking outside the box’
Television and radio commentator Charlie Wolf said Rex Tillerson’s nomination for US Secretary of State “is almost an inspired move.”
“It is definitely thinking outside the box and shows the difference between how the career politician thinks and how a businessman thinks that he is willing to look at other options. Tillerson was not one of his first choices; I don’t think he was familiar with him but it was Secretary Gates, the former Defense Secretary that brought the name up. Condoleezza Rice also endorsed him”, Charlie Wolf continued.
“He found something in Tillerson more than just the fact that he is a fellow businessman, more than the fact that he is a very good businessman and more even than the fact that he worked and negotiated with a lot of countries including Russia. I think they share a vision. That’s an important thing, and I think Mr. Tillerson will put us in a position again where we are respected, but again not at the cost of our relationship with other countries. This is I think a man who knows how to do win-win deals where hopefully both sides in a negotiation can feel pleased when they walk away from table," he told RT.
‘Draining the swamp’
Ed Shultz of RT America says he is “encouraged” by Trump’s pick for the Secretary of State.
“I think that this is a brilliant move by Trump on a number of fronts. This man is an international businessman. He is a perfect guy to have at the table when it comes to trade negotiations. I think the fact that he knows Vladimir Putin is going to end up being positive in the relations that need to be mended with Russia and the US. He is a man who is not Washington. This falls right in the wheelhouse of what Donald Trump said he was going to do – he was going to drain the swamp. He is doing it with his top diplomat to the world, and that is the Secretary of State who has no government experience, who has never been elected to any position, who comes from the private sector and has a history of doing some big deals”, Ed Shultz said.
‘Outside of politics line’
John Hajjar, co-chair, American-MidEast Coalition for Trump, told RT: "It is in the line of Trump’s previous appointees to high office and that are successful people outside of politics. Tillerson is a native Texan. He was very successful in the oil and gas business, he worked his way up in the ranks in ExxonMobil, he has traveled the world, and he is a very intelligent, smart, savvy business person. That’s the model Donald Trump has chosen, and he fits it perfectly".
READ MORE: Trump taps ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson as secretary of state
"You can look at the last eight years in the professional political class. It has rendered the American economy weaker, exacerbated the gap between rich and poor, has deflated our trade deficit, our deficit here at home is $20 trillion from $10 trillion back in 2008 when Barack Obama took office. So, I think that business people who make business decisions, who put American interest first and cut through the fog in Washington and restore power to the people…is what is needed", he added.
The statements, views and opinions expressed in this column are solely those of the author and do not necessarily represent those of RT.