U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was removed from his post by President Donald Trump and replaced by CIA Director Mike Pompeo.
Trump told reporters at the White House that Pompeo has, "tremendous energy, tremendous intellect" and noted that he and Pompeo are "always on the same wavelength."
Pompeo, a former Tea Party member of the House of Representatives representing Kansas, shares many of Trump's hawkish foreign policy views, including his criticisms of the Iran nuclear deal, which Pompeo maintains has put U.S. safety and security at risk.
Trump added that he and Tillerson had "been talking about this for some time," since some of their areas of disagreement — including the Iran deal — indicated that "we were not thinking the same."
"I actually got along well with Rex but really it was a different mindset," Trump told reporters.
A statement from the State Department indicated that Tillerson "did not speak to the President and is unaware of the reason" behind his dismissal. The statement also said Tillerson had every intention of staying in his post.
Tillerson's removal had long been rumored, and Trump asked Tillerson to cut short his diplomatic trip to Africa last week in order to return to Washington, according to The Washington Post, which first reported the news.
Trump wanted to make the staffing change in advance of trade negotiations and his planned talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, according to a senior White House official.
