Skip to main content

Pompeo off to fast start as Trump's top diplomat | TheHill

posted onMay 13, 2018
>

Article snippet: MORE has hit the ground running in his first weeks atop the State Department, drawing a stark contrast with his predecessor by taking a decidedly public approach to his role as chief diplomat. Pompeo has already notched early wins for MORE’s foreign policy agenda, positioning himself as a key player in next month’s historic summit with North Korea. He has also pledged to restore morale among State employees, who were deeply unhappy with the way MORE managed the department. The early moves from Pompeo have impressed even those who did not support his nomination for secretary of State. “To the extent that he says he’s going to be supportive of a strong, robust State Department and of the State Department’s structure, to the extent that he’s had — we applaud him getting the Americans back from North Korea,” Sen. MORE (N.J.), the top Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, told The Hill. “Those are all positive things.” Pompeo, who was formerly Trump’s CIA director, took over at State on April 26, immediately departing on a tour through the Middle East to raise alarm over what the administration views as a growing threat from Iran.  This week, Pompeo spent 13 hours in North Korea hammering out the agenda for Trump’s historic meeting with Kim Jong Un, Pyongyang’s leader. The summit is set to take place June 12 in Singapore.  He capped off the dramatic trip by returning to Washington with three American prisoners, including one who had been held since 2015... Link to the full article to read more

Emotional score for this article