Donald Trump's sacking of his Secretary of State is being described as impulsive.

State department officials have told reporters that Rex Tillerson found out he'd lost his job after the US President tweeted about it.

READ MORE: You're fired! Donald Trump fires Secretary of State

US political correspondent Paul Singer told Kate Hawkesby it's not clear if there was any other discussion leading up to the firing.

"Again with the President, sometimes he acts on the impulse of the moment, and maybe he's had a long-simmering view that he'll get rid of Tillerson and he just woke up this morning with an itch to scratch."

CIA director Mike Pompeo, is set to move into Mr Tillerson's job.

Tension between Trump and Tillerson has simmered for many months, but the president and his top diplomat reached a breaking point over the past week, officials say.

The reason for the latest rift was unclear, but Trump and Tillerson have often appeared at odds over policies such as the nuclear deal with Iran and the tone of US diplomacy. A spokesman for Tillerson said the secretary of state "had every intention of staying" in his job and was "unaware of the reason" for his firing.

At the White House yesterday, Trump said the move had been considered for "a long time."

"We disagreed on things ... the Iran deal," Trump told reporters. "So we were not thinking the same. With Mike Pompeo, we have a similar thought process."

- additional reporting, Washington Post

 

LISTEN TO PAUL SINGER TALK WITH KATE HAWKESBY ABOVE