Rex Tillerson said he ‘never’ considered leaving State Dept. post

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson denied reports Wednesday that Vice President Mike Pence had to convince him to stay on in the administration.

“There’s never been a consideration in my mind to leave,” Mr. Tillerson said at a press conference, adding that he has had to “dispel this notion” several times.

He also said Mr. Pence has never had to persuade him to stay on as secretary of state, as had been reported by NBC News.

Mr. Tillerson declined to address whether he referred to the president as a “moron,” as reported by NBC.

“I’m not going to deal with petty stuff like that,” he said. “I am just not going to be part of this effort to divide this administration.”

State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert denied the comment outright.

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“The secretary did not use that type of language to speak about the president of the United States,” she said at the department’s daily briefing. “He does not use that language to speak about anyone.”

Mr. Tillerson said he had not spoken with President Trump this morning, but the president said he felt “honored” by the secretary’s comments at an event with reporters in Las Vegas.

“It was made up by NBC,” Mr. Trump said of the report, building off his tweets earlier in the day.

“The @NBCNews story has just been totally refuted by Sec. Tillerson and @VP Pence. It is #FakeNews. They should issue an apology to AMERICA!” Mr. Trump tweeted after Mr. Tillerson gave his remarks.

The tweet follows an earlier Trump post accusing NBC News of “dishonest” reporting.

“NBC news is #FakeNews and more dishonest than even CNN. They are a disgrace to good reporting. No wonder their news ratings are way down!” the president tweeted.

Mr. Tillerson praised Mr. Trump’s policy goals, saying the president “breaks the mold” and gave “voice to millions who felt completely abandoned by the political status quo.”

The secretary of state said that he has worked with both United Nations Ambassador Nikki Haley and Secretary of Defense James Mattis on numerous policy decisions involving North Korea and the Islamic State.

“What we have accomplished we have done as a team,” he said.

Earlier reports suggested friction within the national security team, with Ms. Haley being considered for Mr. Tillerson’s job should he resign.