
Elon Musk actually believes Tillerson could be an “excellent” Secretary of State - davidiach
https://techcrunch.com/2017/01/24/elon-musk-actually-believes-rex-tillerson-could-be-an-excellent-secretary-of-state/?sr_share=facebook
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jseliger
So far I haven't seen a strong explanation about why he wouldn't be. There is
much to hate about Trump—I in particular worry about the way he raises the
risks of global nuclear war: [https://jakeseliger.com/2016/11/28/trump-fears-
and-the-nucle...](https://jakeseliger.com/2016/11/28/trump-fears-and-the-
nuclear-apocalypse) —but it seems unwise to automatically oppose anyone he
proposes for his Cabinet.

It is also not impossible that he will appoint a good FDA commissioner:
[http://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2017/01/wil...](http://marginalrevolution.com/marginalrevolution/2017/01/will-
trump-appoint-great-fda-commissioner.html).

One should reserve opprobrium for where it is deserved and not fire it off
generically, especially based on innuendo. Again, that is not to approve
([https://jakeseliger.com/2016/10/10/vote-for-clinton-or-
johns...](https://jakeseliger.com/2016/10/10/vote-for-clinton-or-johnson-for-
president/)), but it should contextualize the discussion. As far as I can
tell, Tillerson _could_ be an excellent Secretary of State. He _could_ also be
a terrible one.

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maxerickson
There's also other dimensions; he might be a very effective Secretary of State
that does things that lots of people disagree with.

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dekhn
Tillerson is really smart. I don't see a problem with this unless you're a
super-hater on Exxon.

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zbyte64
.. or if you're a super-hater of conflicts of interests

.. or if you're a super-hater of those who downplay global warming

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dekhn
During his confirmation hearings, he explicitly said he believed that climate
change exists, and that humans have a contribution.

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joshontheweb
I watched his hearing and was really expecting to dislike the guy. He actually
sounded very reasonable and had well thought out answers to each question.
Whether he can truly avoid any conflict of interest has yet to be seen. He is
definitely a bit suspect given his previous position.

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zbyte64
The conflict of interests is my concern as well. We didn't get a clear picture
of how he would avoid a conflict if it were between Exon & Russia vs USA.
Though I did appreciate the fact that he did disclose his finances to the
ethics review unlike many of the other nominees. Maybe he will be like Tom
Wheeler, but I wouldn't hold my breathe.

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loafa
What's with the "actually" in the title?

