CIA Director Mike Pompeo has risen so far so fast from his roots in the Kansas tea party that before last year, Republican Senator Bob Corker of Tennessee said, "I couldn't have picked him out of a lineup, almost." By the Thursday confirmation hearing Corker chaired for Pompeo as Donald Trump's nominee to run the State Department, the former congressman was not just a familiar presence, but in many ways a reassuring one.
His smarts, preparation and competence make him an automatic Team Trump standout. He's affable, without wearing one of those awful set-in-plaster smiles, and at his ease whether fielding policy questions or trading jokes about Kansas wheat, Kansas water and whether real attaches ask for potty breaks. ("Any diplomat can outlast the folks he's talking to, Senator.") But he's also someone about whom Democrats still have a number of serious questions. Republicans really only have one.
"Many strong voices have been terminated or resigned," from this administration, Corker began. "That's why I think it's fair for our members to ask whether your relationship is rooted in a candid, healthy give-and-take dynamic or whether it's based on deferential willingness to go along to get along." That it's so far been the latter has been our concern since Pompeo was first mentioned for this job last November.
What we, too, most want to know is what Bob Menendez, the ranking Democrat on the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, asked him at the hearing: "Will you enable President Trump's worst instincts? Will you advocate for robust diplomacy or will you take America into unnecessary and costly wars? Will you stand up to President Trump and say, 'No, you are wrong in that view'? Or will you be a 'yes' man?"
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Though every bit as hawkish as advertised, the West Point and Harvard Law alum said that as a former Army officer, he fully appreciates the importance of diplomacy.
If only as a function of ambition, Pompeo is likely to rebuild both the decimated diplomatic corps and some of our many frayed alliances. Unlike his predecessor, Rex Tillerson, he has the disposition for this work, and that's an important asset. Also unlike Tillerson, he knows the threat that Russia poses.
Pompeo is less than convincing, though, on the central question of whether he'll stand up to his boss. Asked whether he'd resign if Trump tried to fire special counsel Robert Mueller, Pompeo said, "I haven't given that question any thought." Which seems almost impossible, especially given that he admitted having been interviewed by Mueller's team as part of the Russia investigation. But "my instincts tell me no," Pompeo said, because in such a moment America would need him more than ever.
Other legitimate worries include Pompeo's climate skepticism, John Bolton-level militarism, past statements about Muslims and opposition to LGBT rights _ a life-or-death issue in countries where homosexuality is criminalized.
But should Democrats block his confirmation, as they have the power to do? With many reservations, no. Because we desperately need someone with his skills at State, and because unlike others the president could name, he has a real shot at rebuilding the shattered department that we and the world so depend on.
And if not him, then who? Laura Ingraham might be open to an offer, or Sean Hannity. So like we said, with a deep sigh, Mike Pompeo for Secretary of State.
