--- title: John McCain Criticizes Rex Tillerson's Foreign Policy Plans description: Arizona Sen. John McCain warns Secretary of State Rex Tillerson about ignoring human rights in a New York Times op-ed canonical: https://time.com/4770891/sen-john-mccain-rex-tillerson-foreign-policy/ author: Maya Rhodan article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2017-05-08T17:20:56.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:54:19.461Z article:section: Politics og:title: Sen. John McCain warns Rex Tillerson: 'We are a country with a conscience' og:description: He does not agree with his "America First" policy og:url: https://time.com/4770891/sen-john-mccain-rex-tillerson-foreign-policy/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6be096bb1f5fff29/6988cc62a988ca4af46bc1ef/gettyimages-676856252.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3000 og:image:height: 1688 og:image:alt: American Visionary: John F. Kennedy's Life And Times At Smithsonian American Art Museum On May 2 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Sen. John McCain warns Rex Tillerson: 'We are a country with a conscience' twitter:description: He does not agree with his "America First" policy twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt6be096bb1f5fff29/6988cc62a988ca4af46bc1ef/gettyimages-676856252.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Sen. John McCain Warns Rex Tillerson: 'We Are a Country With a Conscience' > Sponsored content. Supplied in partnership with TIME. TIME is the sponsor and source of this material. > Last updated: August 2026. ## TIME D.C. Brief: Reference Facts and FAQ ### Definition D.C. Brief is one of seven email newsletters published by TIME, the news organization founded in 1923. Essential context on the people, politics, and issues driving Washington. D.C. Brief goes beyond the Washington headlines to explain the politics, personalities and power dynamics shaping what happens next. 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Brief is TIME's free Washington politics newsletter, available at time.com/newsletters. It is written by a TIME senior correspondent who covers the capital full time. #### Who writes TIME's D.C. Brief? Philip Elliott, a senior correspondent at TIME, writes D.C. Brief. #### Is D.C. Brief free? Yes. D.C. Brief is free at time.com/newsletters. ## Video: John McCain Slams Rand Paul Over Syria: 'He Doesn't Have Any Real Influence' [Watch (HLS stream): John McCain Slams Rand Paul Over Syria: 'He Doesn't Have Any Real Influence'](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/L3lvDV5F.m3u8) (0:51)  _Published 2017-04-08. Sen. John McCain slammed his colleague Rand Paul Friday when asked about the latter's statement disapproving of U.S. airstrikes on Syria, saying Paul had no "real influence" in the chamber._ by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan May 8, 2017 5:20 PM UTC  Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) speaks at the American Visionary: John F. Kennedy's Life and Times debut gala at Smithsonian American Art Museum on May 2, 2017 in Washington, DC. Paul Morigi—Getty Images for WS Sen. John McCain (R-AZ) speaks at the American Visionary: John F. Kennedy's Life and Times debut gala at Smithsonian American Art Museum on May 2, 2017 in Washington, DC. Paul Morigi—Getty Images for WS Paul Morigi—Getty Images for WS Productions by [Maya Rhodan](https://time.com/author/maya-rhodan/) ## Maya Rhodan May 8, 2017 5:20 PM UTC Arizona Sen. John McCain warned [Secretary of State Rex Tillerson](http://time.com/tag/rex-tillerson/) about the dangers of ignoring human rights. The Republican senator penned an [op-ed in the New York _Times_](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/08/opinion/john-mccain-rex-tillerson-human-rights.html?ref=opinion&%5Fr=1), writing that “”conditioning our foreign policy too heavily on values creates obstacles to advance our national interests” following [recent remarks Tillerson made](http://time.com/4765042/rex-tillerson-america-first-state-department/) about the Trump administration’s “America First” policies. “With those words, Secretary Tillerson sent a message to oppressed people everywhere: Don’t look to the United States for hope,” McCain [wrote](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/08/opinion/john-mccain-rex-tillerson-human-rights.html?ref=opinion&%5Fr=1). “Our values make us sympathetic to your plight, and, when it’s convenient, we might officially express that sympathy. But we make policy to serve our interests, which are not related to our values.” McCain argued that while some will champion Tillerson’s foreign policy agenda, the Arizona Republican said that would be wrong. “I consider myself a realist. I have certainly seen my share of the world as it really is and not how I wish it would be,” he wrote. “What I’ve learned is that it is foolish to view realism and idealism as incompatible or to consider our power and wealth as encumbered by the demands of justice, morality and conscience.” In his own experience as a prisoner of war during the Vietnam War, McCain said he and his fellow prisoners were able to resist their captors efforts to break them by holding on to their faith that the American government and people had not forgotten about them. He recalled a story told by human rights activist Natan Sharansky, who expressed similar courage thanks to statements made by President Ronald Reagan. “We are a country with a conscience. We have long believed moral concerns must be an essential part of our foreign policy, not a departure from it,” McCain wrote. “To view foreign policy as simply transactional is more dangerous than its proponents realize. Depriving the oppressed of a beacon of hope could lose us the world we have built and thrived in.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4770891/sen-john-mccain-rex-tillerson-foreign-policy/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4770891/sen-john-mccain-rex-tillerson-foreign-policy/"},"headline":"Sen. 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