MIKE POMPEO/REX TILLERSON/STATE/TRUMP PEOPLE: “U.S. Secretary of State nominee Mike Pompeo promised on Thursday [4-12-18] to rebuild the State Department that has been gutted by the departure of senior diplomats and has found itself sidelined in foreign policy decisions under the Trump administration. A reorganization and hiring freeze initiated by former Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has left the rank and file demoralized, with vacancies in most of the jobs that are filled by political appointees. Pompeo, director of the CIA, said he would work quickly in his new role to fill the gaps…President Donald Trump nominated Pompeo to become the country’s top diplomat on March 13 when he fired Tillerson. Tillerson, a former chief executive of Exxon Mobil(XOM.N), had a rocky relationship with Trump in just over a year in the job. The start of Pompeo’s hearing was disrupted by half a dozen protesters chanting “No Pompeo, no more war” before they were led out by security officials.”
–Patricia Zengerle, Lesley Wroughton, “Trump nominee Pompeo pledges to rebuild State Department,” Reuters, April 12, 2018 10:10 pm