Secretary
of State nomination: Rex Tillerson
(Needs 51-vote majority approval
by Senate)
Why
Question Tillerson’s Nomination?
The
ExxonMobil Chief Executive is a precarious pick for president-elect Donald
Trump’s cabinet. The issues for Tillerson begin with his close affiliation and
business relations with Russia and Vladimir Putin himself. A number of
senators, including Republican Senator Marco Rubio have expressed their serious concerns about Trump’s choice of
Secretary of State.
It
has also been reported that Tillerson ran
a U.S.-Russian oil firm in the Bahamas, a tax haven. Furthermore, Rex Tillerson
negotiated oil drill deals with Russia which opposed U.S. sanctions against
Russia. Tillerson has greatly benefited from ExxonMobil
policies that contradict American foreign policy. In 2015 alone his base salary
was $3 million, and he received a bonus of $2.4 million, long-term stock awards
that were valued at $18.3 million, and benefits and perquisites valued at
$540,000. He currently owns Exxon stocks valued at $200 million, so his financial
interests are entangled with the success of Exxon Mobile.
Sample
Call Dialogue
*This call dialogue is a modified from a template in Indivisible, A Practical Guide for Resisting
the Trump Agenda.
Tip: Take notes during this call so that you can use that
information in social media or in an letter to your editor.
Staffer: [_________]’s office, how can I help you?
Caller: Hi there, I’m a constituent of Senator
[________]. Can I please speak with the staffer who would be handling his/her’s
position on Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State?
Staffer: I’m happy to take down any comments you may
have. Can I ask for your name and address to verify you’re in our district?
Caller: Sure. [Gives name/address]. Can I ask who
I’m speaking with?
Staffer: Yes, this is [_____________].
Caller: Thanks, [__________] I’m calling to ask whether [________________] will vote in opposition
of the nomination of Rex Tillerson for
Secretary of State due to Tillerson’s personal and business relations with
Russia. The Secretary of State is designated with representing the interests of
the United States of America. I am concerned that Tillerson will compromise his
role as Secretary of State as because of his personal financial interests. Can
you confirm [________________]’s position on this and that he/she will vote
against Tillerson’s nomination for Secretary of State ?
If yes:
I am so happy that [_____________] opposes the nomination of Rex Tillerson.
We will be sure to let all of our friends and family know about his/her
position.
If no:
I am very disappointed to hear that. We will be sure to tell many of
his/her constituents that [________________] supports Rex Tillerson, whose
opposed the U.S.’s interests and negotiated with Russia for his personal gain.
Can
you also please ask [_______________] to ensure that Rex Tillerson will address
the following questions during the confirmation hearings in January? * You can
pick and choose/add your own. Email us at contact@wall-of-us.org if you want us to add other questions to this list.
● Why would Tillerson be suitable
to represent the U.S. as Secretary of State if he has already proven his unpatriotic
character when he opposed the U.S. sanction on Russia to promote his personal
Interest? How can we trust him to stay loyal to his country ?
● What is Tillerson’s view of the efficacy of economic
sanctions in general and when does he think they should be imposed?
●
Tillerson will
have 2 million unvested shares that are currently worth somewhere in the
neighborhood of $200 million after he leaves Exxon. What will he do to ensure
that he puts America’s interests before his own?
●
What is his
view of Russia’s air force campaign against innocents in Syria?
●
What is his
view of the fact that the Russian government committed cyberwar to swing this
election in Donald Trump’s favor? Senator Lindsay Graham believes that
sanctions need to be imposed on Putin himself. Do you agree?
●
What is his
view on Ukranian sovereign territory in Crimea?
●
What is his
view of the Iraq and Libyan wars?
