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Colorado's members of Congress react to Tillerson firing

Posted at 3:02 PM, Mar 13, 2018
and last updated 2018-03-13 19:45:13-04

DENVER — Members of Colorado’s congressional delegation had plenty to say after President Donald Trump unceremoniously dumped Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on Tuesday and picked CIA Director Mike Pompeo to take his place.

U.S. Rep. Mike Coffman offered praise for Tillerson’s replacement, describing Pompeo as having “effective diplomatic tact,” in a statement released Tuesday. 

But absent from the Republican’s statement is anything referencing Tillerson or his abrupt departure: 

As my former colleague, Mike Pompeo, has been tapped by the President to serve as our new Secretary of State, I wish him well in this new endeavor. Knowing Mike, he will carry the message and priorities of the American people to the rest of the world with confidence and effective diplomatic tact. I look forward to working with him on topics that touch Colorado’s 6th district residents in the years to come.

However, U.S. Senator Michael Bennet didn’t mince any words when the Democrat called out the president’s actions, saying Trump appears to have trouble dealing with challenging viewpoints:

This president clearly has a hard time with someone who even softly challenges his haphazard, tweet-based foreign policy. He is doubling down on a small-minded approach to a complicated world.
 
Instability in our foreign policy puts us at risk. We need the diplomatic ability to address profound foreign policy challenges, such as the North Korean nuclear program, Russian interference, and increasing Chinese influence. The State Department needs leadership and investment, not chaos and discord.