AIA Aerospace Industries Association : Urges Senate to Confirm Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State

Statement by AIA President and CEO David F. Melcher urging the Senate to confirm Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State.

Arlington, Va. - The Aerospace Industries Association urges the Senate to immediately confirm Rex Tillerson as Secretary of State. As an experienced business executive, Mr. Tillerson understands the interplay among political, security, and economic dynamics as well as the personal relationships needed to be America's chief diplomat.

We welcome the opportunity to work with Mr. Tillerson to expand our industry's support of the State Department's responsibilities for security cooperation and export control of military technologies. This partnership can advance our proposal to the Trump Administration for a new National Security Cooperation Strategy.

AIA, our member companies and our dedicated, highly skilled workforce are proud of the noble work we do supporting U.S. government policy and we stand ready to work with Mr. Tillerson to promote America's foreign policy goals. Our industry contributes the largest positive trade balance of any U.S. industry - $81.6 billion in 2015 - and supports more than 1.7 million jobs in the United States, including 13 percent of our nation's manufacturing workforce. We have great potential to create more jobs, particularly with strong investment in partnerships with our close friends and allies and in projecting American strength around the globe.