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Related: Editorials & Other Articles, Issue Forums, Alliance Forums, Region ForumsDick Cheney Increases Pressure on Rubio to Confirm Exxon C.E.O.
http://www.vanityfair.com/news/2016/12/dick-cheney-marco-rubio-rex-tillersonDick Cheney Increases Pressure on Rubio to Confirm Exxon C.E.O.
The former vice president is lobbying hard for fellow oilman Rex Tillerson.
by Abigail Tracy
December 16, 2016 3:40 pm
Donald Trump and Dick Cheney have not always gotten along. On the campaign trail, Trump repeatedly trashed the Iraq War, for which Cheney served as an irrepressible cheerleader, while the former vice president panned Trumps proposed ban on Muslims and was conspicuously absent from the Republican National Convention. But suddenly, Cheney has emerged as a central player in the confirmation drama surrounding the selection of ExxonMobil C.E.O. Rex Tillerson as secretary of state, turning him into an unexpected Trump ally as the president-elect moves to shore up support for his controversial nominee.
Cheneys machinations, unsurprisingly, have turned to __Marco Rubio. At the beginning of the week, Rubio joined the ranks of senators John McCain and Lindsey Graham by indicating that he might break with the G.O.P. over Tillersons controversial ties to the Russian government and President Vladimir Putin. Being a friend of Vladimir is not an attribute I am hoping for from a #SecretaryOfState, Rubio tweeted on Sunday, and in a statement asserted that he had serious concerns about the appointment.
Rubios vote could prove decisive. With an edge of 52 to 48 seats in the Senate, McCain, Graham and Rubio would be enough to block Tillerson, assuming Democrats also formed a unified front in opposition of the oil executive. But of the trio, Rubio is in a uniquely powerful position. Tillersons confirmation will begin in the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations, where Republicans control just 10 seats to Democrats nine, meaning that Rubio has the power to kill the nomination before it even reaches the Senate floor.
With this in mind, its unsurprising that Cheneywho characterized Tillerson as an inspired choicehas reached out to the Florida senator to sway his vote, as The Washington Post reports. But while Cheney did vote for Trump, his demonstrated allegiance to Tillerson likely extends beyond doing a favor for the president-elect. As the former Chairman and C.E.O. of Halliburton, an engineering and construction company, Cheney has close ties to Exxon and to Tillerson, who has overseen deals with Halliburton in Iraq.
Nor is Cheney the only Republican whose financial ties to Exxon may be informing his lobbying efforts. As the Post has reported, Tillersons name was first floated by thee George W. Bush administration alumni, Condoleezza Rice, Stephen Hadley, and Robert Gates, whose international consulting formRice Hadley Gateshappens to represent ExxonMobil as one of its biggest clients. Rice, a former secretary of state. reportedly talked up Tillerson to vice-president-elect Mike Pence, while Gates, a former C.I.A. director and defense secretary, recommended the C.E.O. directly to Trump. Trump was intrigued, and nominated Tillerson two weeks later.
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Dick Cheney Increases Pressure on Rubio to Confirm Exxon C.E.O. (Original Post)
babylonsister
Dec 2016
OP
Bleacher Creature
(11,258 posts)1. This would be hilarious if there wasn't so much at stake.
Rubio has no backbone whatsoever, so it will be amusing to watch his painful, slow-motion cave.
Unfortunately, that leaves the rest of us with Tillerson.
AmericanActivist
(1,019 posts)2. Of course because Dick Cheney is evil! nm