President-elect Donald Trump early Tuesday announced he intends to nominate ExxonMobil Chairman and CEO Rex Tillerson for secretary of state.

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Tillerson, 64, has spent his entire career at Exxon, where he was hired as an engineer in 1975. He was named CEO in 2006.

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"Rex Tillerson's career is the embodiment of the American dream," Trump said in a statement. "Through hard work, dedication and smart deal-making, Rex rose through the ranks to become CEO of ExxonMobil, one of the world's largest and most respected companies."

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Trump also took to Twitter to praise Tillerson, calling him "one of the truly great business leaders of the world."