Tillerson, Rex Wayne (1952-…), an American businessman, served as secretary of state in the Cabinet of United States President Donald J. Trump 2017 and early 2018. The secretary of state heads the Department of State, which manages U.S. relations with foreign countries. Tillerson had previously served as the chief executive officer (CEO) of the Exxon Mobil Corporation , one of the world’s largest petroleum companies. The company is also known as ExxonMobil.
Tillerson was born on March 23, 1952, in Wichita Falls, Texas. He received a civil engineering degree from the University of Texas at Austin in 1975. Civil engineering involves the planning and supervision of such large construction projects as bridges, canals, dams, and pipelines. After graduating, Tillerson joined the Exxon Corporation as a production engineer. In 1989, Tillerson became general manager of the corporation’s central production division in the United States. In 1998, he was named vice president of Exxon Ventures and president of Exxon Neftegas Limited, Exxon subsidiaries—that is, smaller companies controlled by Exxon. Both companies were involved in managing Exxon’s holdings in Russia and other parts of the former Soviet Union.
Exxon merged with the Mobil Corporation in 1999, forming ExxonMobil. That year, Tillerson was named executive vice president of the ExxonMobil Development Company, a part of the corporation responsible for planning and managing oil and gas development projects. Tillerson became ExxonMobil’s chairman and chief executive officer in 2006. He also served as the national president of the Boy Scouts of America from 2010 to 2012.
Following Trump’s election as president in 2016, he nominated Tillerson to become secretary of state. Political observers noted that Tillerson would be the first person to serve in the position with no prior experience in government. His supporters, however, insisted that in his role as ExxonMobil CEO, Tillerson had managed complex international deals in many countries. Tillerson resigned his position as CEO in January 2017. The following month, his nomination was confirmed by a vote in the U.S. Senate.
As secretary of state, Tillerson managed U.S. responses to crises with such countries as Iran, North Korea, Russia, and Syria. But Tillerson and Trump frequently clashed over policy and the tone of U.S. diplomatic language. In March 2018, Trump fired Tillerson and nominated U.S. Central Intelligence Agency Director Mike Pompeo to replace him as secretary of state. The Senate confirmed Pompeo’s appointment the following month.
