Donald Trump hired and fired Rex Tillerson for all the wrong reasons Trump brags about winging it. How he picked Tillerson is a good example of the damage that kind of low-energy laziness can do.

Paul Brandus | Opinion columnist

Show Caption Hide Caption Rex Tillerson ousted by Trump via Twitter Secretary of State Rex Tillerson was fired on Twitter by President Trump after a 14-month tenure.

Donald Trump has famously said that he hires only “the very best people,” a claim demolished long ago by the likes of Steve (racism is a "badge of honor”) Bannon, Anthony (“I’m not trying to suck my own ****”) Scaramucci, Tom (“private jet”) Price and Michael Flynn, the short-lived national security adviser who pleaded guilty to lying to the FBI and is now cooperating with special counsel Robert Mueller's Russia investigation. You know the only difference between this bunch and the cast of Celebrity Apprentice? Better tailoring.

But Rex Tillerson was different. The former chief executive officer of Exxon Mobil is a dignified man who brought to the table global savvy and decades of relationships with world leaders. Along with Defense Secretary James Mattis, he was regarded as a smart, sober choice.

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Tillerson was an out-of-the-blue nominee for Trump, but as the president said Tuesday as he left for California, they didn’t see eye-to-eye on many things. Trump defenders say, correctly, that the president has every right to have whoever he wants as secretary of State. But what does it say about Trump’s judgment that he would hire Tillerson, only to clash with him from the get-go?

A secretary of State is fourth in the line of succession to the presidency itself — a hugely important job. Yet Trump, who is famously superficial, doesn’t read and gets bored quickly, spent next to no time with Tillerson. The Exxon CEO from Texas reportedly got the job because Trump was impressed by his "strength" and "swagger." Trump brags about winging it, and here’s a good example of the damage that kind of low-energy laziness can do.

Tillerson’s tenure, less than 14 months, was the shortest of any secretary of State in three-quarters of a century (and that’s only because Harry Truman, who became president after the sudden death of Franklin Roosevelt in 1945, wanted his own man). And the manner in which Tillerson learned of his dismissal — via Twitter — is beyond tacky.

Trump supporters love how he does everything differently, but I say not having the class and common decency to fire someone that senior in person, or at least on the phone, is nothing to admire. We look to our presidents to set a higher example; to behave in a way that makes us proud. A president represents us to the rest of the world. Yet Donald Trump, each day, lowers the bar with his rude, petty and boorish behavior.

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He said this morning that CIA chief Mike Pompeo, his choice for Foggy Bottom, will, if confirmed, "continue our program of restoring America’s standing in the world.” For a leader who manufactures fake news day in and day out, this is one of Trump’s more breathtaking lies. A survey of 37 nations by the nonpartisan Pew Research Center shows that with Trump at the helm, America’s global reputation and image have sunk faster than the Titanic.

From a policy standpoint, Tillerson had broken ranks with the president on key issues like Iran (he was more supportive), trade (he was less protectionist) and how to deal with Russian cyber attacks (he was tougher on Russia). The choice of Pompeo — a former congressman aligned with the Tea Party and Trump's "America First" views — suggests a hard pivot to the right. His ascent, coming just a week after the departure of chief economic adviser Gary Cohn, makes it clear that the president is purging his ranks of moderate voices.

In an election season in which Democrats appear to have the momentum, Trump is playing more and more to his base. We’ll know in November if that’s a winning strategy.

Paul Brandus, founder and White House bureau chief of West Wing Reports, is the author of This Day in Presidential History and a member of USA TODAY's Board of Contributors. Follow him on Twitter: @WestWingReport