WASHINGTON—Saying the administration would not tolerate such egregious behavior from an official in his capacity, the White House confirmed Tuesday that outgoing Secretary of State Rex Tillerson had been fired for inappropriately weighing in on international politics. “Mr. Tillerson was well aware of what we expected from him as the nation’s chief diplomat, and therefore should have known better than to give his opinions on a foreign policy matter,” read the statement from the White House, citing Tillerson’s public condemnation of Russia for its likely involvement in a nerve agent attack in the U.K. as “completely out of line” and “inconsistent with the current administration’s understanding of his duties.” “By assessing an international situation between allies and voicing his perspective as head of the State Department, Mr. Tillerson completely overstepped his jurisdiction. This administration’s firm stance against this kind of overreach by senior diplomatic advisers led President Trump to act swiftly and remove Mr. Tillerson from his position.” At press time, Trump was praising his new nominee for secretary of state, Mike Pompeo, for his strong commitment to diplomacy within the boundaries of what the president will allow.

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