Trump’s Secretary of State Pick Just Lied Under Oath, And It Backfired Beautifully
The Senate confirmation hearings are underway for President-elect Donald Trump’s cabinet picks. The former CEO of Exxon Mobil, one of the most profitable corporations in the history of the world, Rex Tillerson is already proving himself to be a liar and a fraud while under oath at his own confirmation hearing. One should expect nothing less from a Trump nominee.
Tillerson has been tapped to be the next Secretary of State, and he will likely become the nation’s next top diplomat. Given that Tillerson has a long history of doing business with the Russian government, he was grilled relentlessly about his association with the despot-run nation. Tillerson was also questioned about Trump’s close Russian ties and the presidential election being stolen due to Russia’s influence. In standard fare, Tillerson attempted to dodge and evade all relevant questions.
Tillerson was asked about his, and Exxon Mobil’s, history of lobbying against sanctions which were put in place against Russia by President Barack Obama’s administration in response to the Russian invasion of Crimea in 2014. Tillerson deftly responded, “I have never lobbied against sanctions. To my knowledge, Exxon never directly lobbied against sanctions.”
This whopper of a lie was so blatant that even the Republican in charge of the hearing Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) called Tillerson out. Corker said, “I think you called me at the time.” Tillerson said that was true but that he only called to understand “how the sanctions are going to be constructed.”
Without audio evidence of the telephone call it is impossible to prove what Tillerson asked, and without the ability to read his mind it is impossible to know why he was asking specific questions. Still, it makes little sense that the CEO of the biggest oil corporation in the world would be more than curious about how sanctions were going to be constructed. It is reasonable to believe Tillerson was probing for information on how to dismantle the sanctions. Yet believing something and proving something to be a stone fact are two entirely different beasts and Tillerson understands the clear distinction which is why he phrased his answer in such a way.
ExxonMobil successfully lobbied against a bill that would have made it harder for the next president to lift sanctions against Russia, clearing the way for the oil giant to restart a program worth billions of dollars if Donald Trump eases those restrictions as president.
Given Tillerson’s under oath sworn testimony that “to my knowledge, Exxon never directly lobbied against sanctions” places him in a box. He was either an inept executive, at the top of the food chain of a corporation which generates billions of dollars a year in profit and didn’t know what his underlings were doing — or he’s a shameless liar. It is one or the other and this is by Tillerson’s doing. Neither proposition is flattering for a man who is seeking to represent the United States and its diplomatic affairs under Trump’s presidency.
But wait — there’s more.
Wall Street Journal reporter Byron Tau has dedicated himself to covering corporate lobbying, and he recently tweeted further evidence of Tillerson’s attempted deception:
There are 14 lobbying reports where Exxon lists lobbying on sanctions between 2006 and 2014, despite what Tillerson just said under oath
— Byron Tau (@ByronTau) January 11, 2017
Here a 2010 lobbying report from Exxon listing where the issue of sanctions lobbying is listed seven times. https://t.co/9h8CZnJwVb
— Byron Tau (@ByronTau) January 11, 2017
Here’s a 2014 lobbying report from Exxon where it lobbies on “provisions related to sanctions” in a Russia bill. https://t.co/6obNVy5SAi
— Byron Tau (@ByronTau) January 11, 2017
I could keep going, but you get the point. Exxon lobbied on sanctions and disclosed that activity in public reports. Period.
— Byron Tau (@ByronTau) January 11, 2017
Tau’s links to the various instances of Exxon Mobil’s lobbying efforts further incriminates Tillerson. Lying under oath, also known as perjury, is a felony which carries with it a possible sentence of 5 years in prison. This is clearly outlined in U.S. Code 1621 of Title 18 which says:
in any declaration, certificate, verification, or statement under penalty of perjury as permitted under section 1746 of title 28, United States Code, willfully subscribes as true any material matter which he does not believe to be true;
is guilty of perjury and shall, except as otherwise expressly provided by law, be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than five years, or both.
At this point it is not a question if Tillerson lied, but when he will be prosecuted for his lies. Under the law, Tillerson should be tried, and with the evidence presented, convicted for perjury. Trump ran his campaign with a main pillar being the rule of law and it is time he actually practices what he preached.
Watch Tillerson’s confirmation hearing below:
