Rex Tillerson, ExxonMobil CEO and former Boy Scouts president, would be the first top US diplomat in modern history never to have held public office

Donald Trump named Rex Tillerson as his choice for the next secretary of state on Tuesday, potentially elevating an individual with no experience in public office to the position of America’s top diplomat for the first time in modern history.

But beyond Tillerson’s role as the chief executive officer of oil giant ExxonMobil, a post he has held since 2006, little is known about the man poised to succeed John Kerry if confirmed by the US Senate early next year.

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