Read Mitt Romney’s statement on not being picked for secretary of state
"It was an honor to have been considered."
President-elect Donald Trump passed over former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, among other candidates, and nominated ExxonMobil CEO Rex Tillerson to be secretary of state Tuesday.
Hours before Tillerson’s appointment was officially announced, Romney—who met with Trump several times for the position, despite rejecting the candidate during the campaign—posted a statement on Facebook.
It was an honor to have been considered for Secretary of State of our great country. My discussions with President-elect Trump have been both enjoyable and enlightening. I have very high hopes that the new administration will lead the nation to greater strength, prosperity and peace.
Despite Romney’s steadfast criticism of Trump, The Boston Globe‘s Matt Viser has reported the former governor and 2012 Republican nominee auditioned for the secretary of state job out a sense of obligation to the “greater good.”
Tillerson is expected to face a fraught confirmation process, due to the oil mogul’s ties to Russia and its autocratic leader, President Vladimir Putin. In 2012, Romney called Russia the United States’ “number one geopolitical foe.”
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