AT ARM’S LENGTH

State Department: Rudy Giuliani ‘Speaks for Himself’ on Foreign Policy

After many questioned why Trump’s personal lawyer was making public announcements about North Korea and Iran.

The U.S. State Department has sought to distance itself from Rudy Giuliani after the former New York City mayor and new addition to President Trump’s legal team made a series of controversial declarations on U.S. foreign policy. “He speaks for himself and not on behalf of the administration on foreign policy,” State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said Monday. Over the weekend, Giuliani embarked on a media blitz in which he claimed three American prisoners in North Korea were about to be released and suggested Trump is “committed” to regime change in Iran. Giuliani’s comments reportedly triggered alarm at the State Department, Pentagon, and other national-security agencies, with many wondering why the president’s personal lawyer was making public statements about sensitive diplomatic issues. Sources cited by the Associated Press on Monday said Trump, growing increasingly frustrated with Giuliani’s unpredictable remarks, has been considering banning him from doing television interviews.