Alwaght- Mike Pompeo, US Secretary of State, reportedly plans to resign as soon as possible and run in next year’s elections as Donald Trump is grappling with Ukraine gate and potential impeachment.
Media reported on Tuesday that Pompeo told three prominent Republicans that Pompeo’s initial plan had been to stay in office at the State Department until early spring next year, however, recent political developments, including ongoing impeachment inquiry over the Ukraine scandal, were hurting Pompeo and that he wanted to exit sooner.
The report said the House impeachment inquiry, which involved a few senior US diplomats, had put stress on his relationship with Trump.
It said the new strain had prompted Pompeo to seek to reschedule the timing of his exit to make it as smooth as possible.
The three prominent Republicans added that as impeachment hearings gained momentum, Pompeo was faced with a dilemma: support the boss, or the staff.
On the one hand, the longer he stayed, the greater the criticism of his failure to defend the senior diplomats implicated in the Ukraine scandal.
Trump and his loyalists were angered at Pompeo for the damning testimony against the Republican president given by the senior diplomats involved in the scandal and demanded Pompeo’s strong support of the president.
Last month, Trump criticized Pompeo by name, tweeting that Pompeo “made a mistake” when he rehired retired diplomat William Taylor.
Taylor was chosen by Pompeo to serve as the top American representative in Ukraine after another senior diplomat Marie Yovanovitch was recalled.
Both senior diplomats have given damning testimony against Trump, saying he used his leverage as the US president to push his Ukrainian counterpart to launch a criminal investigation against ex-Vice President Joe Biden and his son Hunter.
