Secretary of State Rex Tillerson has lost his first fight with the White House.

Former deputy national security adviser Elliott Abrams was set to be named the No. 2 official at the State Department, after receiving the blessing of the newly sworn in secretary of state and joining him for an Oval Office meeting with President Trump.

But sometime after the Tuesday meeting, which mostly featured a foreign policy discussion between the president and his new secretary of state, Trump changed his mind and vetoed the appointment.

“Tillerson fought the president and went back to try to salvage it,” said a source familiar with the secretary of state’s actions.

The source also said chief strategist Steve Bannon was not an Abrams fan.

“Bannon did not want Abrams,” the source said.

Some of Abrams’ writings that were critical of then-candidate Trump — even questioning his fitness for office — became an issue, the source said.

The articles were not a problem throughout Tillerson’s selection process until the very end, when Trump himself began focusing on Abrams’ upcoming appointment.

“The White House leaked the fact that Trump was meeting with Tillerson and Abrams Tuesday, and that Abrams was Tillerson’s choice. After the meeting the White House let people know the meeting went well, and it was a done deal,” a source familiar with what happened said.

“Then, with no warning, the White House pulls the plug. Tillerson must be furious,” the source added.

The fight appears to be the first disagreement between the State Department and White House in the Trump administration.

Yet it’s not dissimilar to ones Trump has had with Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis, who has had personnel spiked by the White House for similar reasons.

The State Department and White House did not comment.

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