Trump: I wish Tillerson would be ‘a little bit tougher’

President Trump told reporters Saturday that he sometimes wishes Secretary of State Rex Tillerson would “be a little tougher.”

“We have a very good relationship,” Trump said Saturday. “We disagree on a couple of things, sometimes I’d like him to be a little bit tougher.

“But other than that we have a very good relationship.”

Trump’s remarks come after reports that he and Tillerson have a tense relationship. NBC News first reported last week that Tillerson called Trump a “moron” and considered leaving the Trump administration.

“The vice president has never had to persuade me to remain as secretary of State because I have never considered leaving,” Tillerson said Wednesday, denying the reports.{mosads}

Tillerson did not directly deny that he called Trump a “moron” but the State Department denied the report at a later press conference.

The relationship between Trump and Tillerson has reportedly grown more intense in recent months.

Trump is reportedly frustrated that Tillerson appears to care more about how the U.S. appears to the rest of the world than Trump’s personal image, and White House officials are also reportedly upset that the secretary won’t return their phone calls.