Wichita Falls native Rex Tillerson, the CEO of ExxonMobil, is on the short list of picks for Secretary of State.  President-elect Trump spoke with Tillerson at Trump Tower on Monday. Tillerson has been at the head of ExxonMobil for a decade. The 64 year-old joined Exxon as an engineer in 1975.

Tillerson will, as will most of Mr. Trump’s cabinet picks, face a barrage of Democratic push back in Senate confirmation. But, thanks to the so-called ‘nuclear option’ rules changes ushered in by Democrats themselves in 2013, if Tillerson get’s the final nod from Trump, Democrat opposition will be virtually a non-issue.

ExxonMobil has generated $34 billion in net income in the past year, and paid more than $80 billion in taxes. Tillerson is listed at #25 on Forbes list of “The World’s Most Powerful People”. Tillerson is a native of Wichita Falls and makes his home in Irving, TX.

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