But for all of his public combativeness, Mr. Trump is notoriously reluctant to fire people, and it was not known if Mr. Tillerson had agreed to step down by then. White House officials were debating whether it would be better to spread out any departures or just get them over with all at once. White House officials said Mr. Tillerson had been seen as a lame duck as far back as late summer. Mr. Trump and Mr. Tillerson have been at odds over a host of major issues, including the Iran nuclear deal, the confrontation with North Korea and a clash between Arab allies. Mr. Cotton has been perhaps Mr. Trump’s most important supporter in the Senate on national security and immigration and a valued outside adviser.

Source: New York Times November 30, 2017 14:47 UTC