Tillerson Must Not Undermine the President

Yesterday, Secretary of State Rex Tillerson delivered very conciliatory remarks regarding North Korea.  It’s the latest instance of a now-familiar pattern:  First, President Trump takes a relatively robust position about a foreign policy challenge.  Then, Secretary Tillerson says basically the opposite.

Perhaps this is a good cop/bad cop routine, in which the Commander-in-Chief and his top diplomat wage a carefully choreographed psychological warfare campaign to induce a recalcitrant opponent to change its behavior.

An alternative description seems to fit the facts more accurately: President Trump is being systematically undermined by a Secretary of State who disagrees with his position on not only North Korea, but on such others as Qatar and Iran, too.

The President has lately been reprising his most famous role on “The Apprentice.”  If Mr. Tillerson is actually sabotaging Trump policies, he should be told, “You’re fired.”