The Breaking Point- A bleak view of American leadership

The New Yorker, an article by Dexter Filkins: The Breaking Point: Will Donald Trump let the Secretary of State do his job?",  should be an article that provides objective perspective about the style of leadership provided to the State Department by the former Exxon CEO.

The New Yorker

Although author Filkins attempts to lift this article above the political fray, by creating a premise for understanding how the Secretary of State will lead (or not) in American diplomacy, his research leaves the reader with fear about what will happen next? This is a depressing analysis about how Secretary Rex Tillerson has already failed. 

After a career building one corporate success after another with Exxon, now, Tillerson is in over his head, while trying to deal with learning international diplomacy from a politically nuanced perspective, troubled by how to do his best to manage the volatile Donald Trump, his boss.

Frankly, as much as Tillerson is likely on the brink of resigning as are result of intimidation from Trump and by the lack of confidence the State Department has in his abilities to negotiate with Iran, et.al, the fact is, he's feeling trapped by "Boy Scout" patriotism. It's a sense of duty he learned, shaped by his experience as an Eagle Scout and the organization's national leader.  

Eventually, he will cave and fail, just like everybody else who has fallen into the vortex of Donald Trump's enigmatic political cauldron. In fact, the failure rate in the Trump administration is just the tip of the iceberg. Eventually, everyone who supported Donald Trump will be painted with the same tainted brush.  "Did you work for Donald Trump?  No need apply."

Sad, for Tillerson, who had been on the brink of a very prestigious retirement from Exxon.  By accepting the position of Secretary of State, he truly believed (and I sincerely believe he did) that he was doing something good for his country and, thereby, for the world.

He was wrong.  

Dexter Filkins, author of "The Breaking Point: Will Donald Trump let the Secretary of State Do his job", in The New Yorker

Although The New Yorker article is typically long and, frankly, the author Filkins jumps around a lot in the narrative, the "take away" is in the last paragraph. So, if the reader goes to the end, like cheating on a mystery novel, the purpose of the entire text is quickly revealed. In fact, the damage done is already too late to fix. By not filling key ambassador positions to his isolation from experts who could help, Tillerson is regressing American foreign policy, a reputation built by predecessors. 

Tillerson's failures are also compounded, resulting from the chaotic Donald Trump administration. In other words, as one Asian expert said, "Why deal with the US embassy, when what matters is what Donald Trump Tweets?". 

Depressing, but essential reading, by Dexter Filkins.  

This New Yorker article will be required reading by history majors in the coming years, as they try to figure out how the Republicans let all of this rigmarole happen, without finding out a way to stop it.