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‘We’re in a Worse Place Today Than We Were Before He Came In’

Former U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson on the mess Donald Trump is leaving behind.

By , a writer and human rights activist.
Rex Tillerson testifies during his confirmation hearing to be U.S. secretary of state before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in Washington on Jan. 11, 2017.
Rex Tillerson testifies during his confirmation hearing to be U.S. secretary of state before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in Washington on Jan. 11, 2017.
Rex Tillerson testifies during his confirmation hearing to be U.S. secretary of state before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee in Washington on Jan. 11, 2017. Alex Wong/Getty Images

President Donald Trump is on the way out of office—perhaps even earlier than the Jan. 20 inauguration of President-elect Joe Biden. But the legacy he leaves behind—not just in terms of increasingly polarized domestic politics but also in terms of foreign policy—will greatly shape the next administration right out of the gate.

Kelly Bjorklund is a writer and human rights activist.

Tags: China, Donald Trump, U.S. State Department, United States

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Outgoing U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson makes a statement on his departure from the State Department March 13. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
Outgoing U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson makes a statement on his departure from the State Department March 13. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)

The Quiet Death of Tillerson’s ‘Redesign’ of State

Overhauling Foggy Bottom was once a centerpiece of the Trump administration’s reforms. Where did those plans go?

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Outgoing U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson gives a farewell address to State Department staff in Washington on March 22. (Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images)
Outgoing U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson gives a farewell address to State Department staff in Washington on March 22. (Nicholas Kamm/AFP/Getty Images)

Tillerson Decries ‘Mean-Spirited’ D.C. in Farewell Address

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Cultural Decoupling From China Is Not the Answer

Beijing’s censorship has pernicious effects on artists and educational institutions—but abandoning all cultural ties would do more harm than good.

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