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So i do think it was deliberate in a sense. going forward, i think they need to take a good look at the priority positions we need to fill with dedicated career individuals who know what they're doing as we move forward in this complicated world. we have the president meeting with the north korean leader. who is going to lead those talks on the state department side? who is going to brief them up on that? so you're seeing it across the board. >> rosa, that presumes that the white house wants to have a functioning state department, wants to do typical diplomacy. the way we're set up right now, ...

Ambassadorial posts around the globe not filled. a number of undersecretary, assistant secretary roles not filled. we've seen that vacuum of leadership for the department, for our key allies across the globe, it's usual that we fill those spots and move forward and hopefully secretary designate pompeo can work closely with the white house because they do have that relationship. let's put forward qualified experienced individuals in these roles so we can move forward. >> do people think the dismantling was deliberate and tillerson went in to wreck the state department on purpose or that he was ...

Firing of mccabe and is almost certainly speculating about it. it's something he's interested? >> what happens if that happens? what happens inside the justice department if that happens? do you think rosenstein will do it? >> i don't think so. i think the president would have to fire his way down the line to find someone who did. i think the president is testing the waters, seeing if republicans push back on him. if he doesn't hear that kind of push back, you'll see him move. >> eric guster, what happens from a legal standpoint? is that an additional obstruction of justice? >> it's obstructio...

Leader. the big meeting he's got coming up, alex, is with the leader of ind india, with modi when he arrives in the philippines tomorrow, but these personal relationships can add a little flavor and color, at the end of the day, it's geopolitics, economics that will drive it. the u.s. decision to withdraw from the transpacific partnership was such a loss for the country. president trump over estimates what he can get out of a handshake. he underestimates what he can get out of a functioning state department and real geopolitical detect connectors between nations. >> the only one between the 12...

Errol, what do you think? >> it's a great answer. it works in part because it skirts the real issue. the real issue is that the secretary of state has been undercut by the president. more importantly, though, it's not clear whether or not the state department as a whole, diplomacy as a whole is supposed to be downplayed. we keep hearing about the funding cuts. we keep hearing about the staffing chaos. there were a number of different desks that do not have managers in front of them. that is rex tillerson's doing as a strategy that he agreed on with the president from day one. the reality is af...