University of New Mexico UNM Digital Repository NotiCen Latin America Digital Beat (LADB) 4-8-1988 Summary: Mcneil Testimony On U.S. "obsession With Nicaragua," Noriega, Arms & Drug Traffic Deborah Tyroler Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/noticen Recommended Citation Tyroler, Deborah. "Summary: Mcneil Testimony On U.S. "obsession With Nicaragua," Noriega, Arms & Drug Traffic." (1988). https://digitalrepository.unm.edu/noticen/1972 This Article is brought to you for free and open access by the Latin America Digital Beat (LADB) at UNM Digital Repository. It has been accepted for inclusion in NotiCen by an authorized administrator of UNM Digital Repository. For more information, please contact
[email protected]. LADB Article Id: 075095 ISSN: 1089-1560 Summary: Mcneil Testimony On U.S. "obsession With Nicaragua," Noriega, Arms & Drug Traffic by Deborah Tyroler Category/Department: General Published: Friday, April 8, 1988 On April 4, Francis J. McNeil testified before the Senate Foreign Relations Committee's subcommittee on terrorism, narcotics and international operations, chaired by Sen. John Kerry. McNeil, a 31-year Foreign Service officer, left the State Department in February 1987, due to "clashes" with Asst. Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs Elliott Abrams. At the time of his resignation, McNeil held the position of Senior Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Intelligence and Research. Among other posts in his career, McNeil served as US Ambassador to Costa Rica, and Deputy Asst. Secretary of State for Inter-American Affairs. McNeil's testimony on selected topics is summarized below. "Obsession with Nicaragua" Leads U.S. to Subvert Anti-Drug & Support for Democratization Policies In his testimony, McNeil argued that some US officials' "obsession with Nicaragua" precluded "rational decisionmaking" regarding other US policy objectives, particularly commitments to curb international drug trafficking and terrorism, and to support democratization in Latin America.