U. S . AMBASSA U.S. D ORS TO AMBASSADORS M E XICO : TH TO MEXICO E R E TH E RELATIONSHIP LATIONSHIP THROH UG THEIR EYES THRO DOLIA ESTÉVEZ has lucidly and brilliantly compiled a revealing insight into U.S.-Mexico ties cover- ing a period of gradual redefinition of the prickly relationship. This oral history of American envoys illustrates how Mexico stood apart from the rest of Latin America in a most critical time-frame as seen by U Washington’s “men in Mexico.” The significance of these interviews is that they portray U.S. Ambassadors GH as true “pro-consuls” who invariably managed the bilateral relationship... surprisingly Mexico has not yet learned that to be a true and mature equal partner of the U.S., Mexico’s “man” in Washington should lead TH the bilateral agenda just as every important and powerful country does. E IR A mbassador Cris Arcos, former Senior U.S. career diplomat E Y U.S. AMBASSADORS TO MEXICO, THE RELATIONSHIP THROUGH THEIR EYES is as exciting as a E political thriller to anyone interested in U.S.-Mexican relations and Mexican political development since S the 1970s. Readers owe DOLIA ESTÉVEZ, who has used her extensive, first-hand professional knowledge of events and personalities, a huge debt of gratitude for her perceptive and insightful questions and an- swers which shed much new light on one of the most influential actors in a critically significant bilateral relationship and on the general role of ambassadors in U.S. foreign policy. Roderic Ai Camp, author of Mexican Political Biographies, 1939-2009 DOLIA ESTÉVEz’s book offers a revealing behind-the-scenes look at U.S. policy toward Mexico, with former American ambassadors speaking with surprising candor about their exchanges with Mexican leaders and their own government. These in-depth interviews provide new details about the crises and suc- cesses in the relationship -- NAFTA, the drug wars, the 1994 peso crisis -- and reveal how each country D tries to influence the other. The book will be of immense value both to historians and to those trying to OLIA understand how U.S. policy toward Mexico is made. E M ary Beth Sheridan, The Washington Post, editor STÉV E Z DOLIA ESTÉVEZ U.S. AMBASSADORS TO MEXICO THE RELATIONSHIP THROUGH THEIR EYES DOLIA ESTÉVEZ Author: Dolia Estévez Cover image: Fernando Luna Arce/FID Prensa. ISBN: 978-1-938027-09-3 © 2012, Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars www.wilsoncenter.org The Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, established by Congress in 1968 and headquartered in Washington, DC, is a living national memorial to President Wilson. The Center’s mission is to commemorate the ideals and con- cerns of Woodrow Wilson by providing a link between the worlds of ideas and policy, while fostering research, study, discussion, and collaboration among a broad spectrum of individuals concerned with policy and scholarship in national and international affairs. Supported by public and private funds, the Center is a nonpartisan institution engaged in the study of national and world affairs. It establishes and maintains a neutral forum for free, open, and informed dialogue. Conclusions or opinions expressed in Center publications and programs are those of the authors and speakers and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Center staff, fellows, trustees, advi- sory groups, or any individuals or organizations that provide financial support to the Center. The Center is the publisher of The Wilson Quarterly and home of Woodrow Wilson Center Press, dialogue radio and television. For more information about the Center’s activities and publi- cations, please visit us on the web at www.wilsoncenter.org. Jane Harman, Director, President and CEO Joseph B. Gildenhorn Chairman of the Board Sander R. Gerber Vice Chairman Public Citizen Members: James H. Billington, Librarian of Congress; Hillary R. Clinton, Secretary, U.S. Department of State; G. Wayne Clough, Secretary, Smithsonian Institution; Arne Duncan, Secretary, U.S. Department of Education; David Ferriero, Archivist of the United States; Fred P. Hochberg, Chairman and President, Export-Import Bank; James Leach, Chairman, National Endowment for the Humanities; Kathleen Sebelius, Secretary, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Private Citizen Members: Timothy Broas, John T. Casteen III, Charles Cobb, Jr., Thelma Duggin, Carlos M. Gutierrez, Susan Hutchison, Barry S. Jackson Wilson National Cabinet: Eddie & Sylvia Brown, Melva Bucksbaum & Raymond Learsy, Ambassadors Sue & Chuck Cobb, Lester Crown, Thelma Duggin, Judi Flom, Sander R. Gerber, Ambassador Joseph B. Gildenhorn & Alma Gildenhorn, Harman Family Foundation, Susan Hutchison, Frank F. Islam, Willem Kooyker, Linda B. & Tobia G. Mercuro, Dr. Alexander V. Mirtchev, Wayne Rogers, Leo Zickler To the memory of my many Mexican colleagues who have lost their lives for doing their job without government protection. CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS 2 PROLOGUE 3 Andrew Selee INTRODUCTION 5 1 / P ATRICK J. LUCEY 11 2 / JULIAN NAVA 27 3 / JOHN A. GAVIN 41 4 / CHARLES J. PILLIOD JR. 57 5 / JOHN D. NEGROPONTE 63 6 / JAMES R. JONES 81 7 / JEFFREY DAVIDOW 101 8 / ANTONIO O. GARZA JR. 119 9 / CARLOS PASCUAL 135 U.S. ENVOYS AND AMBASSADORS 151 TO MEXICO, 1823-2011 ABOUT THE AUTHOR 153 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS wish to thank the Woodrow Wilson Center’s Mexico Institute, and especially I Andrew Selee, who believed in my project since the first day and gave me his valuable insights throughout its development. Thanks to the support of the Mexico Institute, I was able to do the research, locate the ambassadors, and travel to conduct the interviews. I also wish to thank the following people for their con- tributions toward making this book come to life: Miguel Salazar, for editing and carefully looking over the design and final production, Allison Cordell, for copy- editing and proofreading, Diana Rodriguez, for making timely suggestions to the introduction, Monica Gaebe, for editing the first draft, and last but not least, Eric Olson, for his assistance in overseeing the final phase of this book. A special thanks goes to my husband, W. Stuart Pettingell, for helping me transcribe long hours of interviews and explaining the meaning of some very unique American idioms, and to my son and daughter, Alexander and Angelica, for giving me the time and peace of mind to focus on my work. Finally, my deepest gratitude goes to each and every one of the ambassadors whose testimonies constitute the centerpiece of this volume: Patrick J. Lucey, Julian Nava, John A. Gavin, John D. Negroponte, James R. Jones, Jeffrey Davidow, Antonio O. Garza and Carlos Pascual. Without their forthcoming responses and patience with my questions this book, which is little more than a forum to hear their voices and see Mexico through their eyes, would not have been possible. PROLOGUE ANDREW SELEE ew relationships, if any, matter more to the United States than Mexico. It is a Fvital trading partner, a source of heritage for millions of Americans, a neighbor in an uncertain world, and a partner on numerous global challenges. It is also a relationship fraught with historical conflict, significant economic disparities, and a persistent cultural divide. Mexicans and Americans need each other like never before, and the policies and societies in the two countries are deeply intertwined. However, reaching understanding on the key issues that affect both countries is never easy. As the two countries face the twenty-first century, getting their shared challenges right – economic integration, migration, and security –, and coordinat- ing effectively on global challenges from climate change to economic policy will be critical to the well-being of millions of citizens in both countries. The role of the U.S. ambassador in Mexico in moving this relationship forward has always been particularly important for setting the overall tone of engagement. Some have speculated that the U.S. ambassador is a kind of “proconsul” who sets the key agenda items in the relationship. Others have seen the ambassador as a mere representative of larger U.S. interests formulated in Washington. To date, however, we have never had a first-hand account of how the U.S. ambassadors see their own role in the relationship. In this publication, Dolia Estévez has pro- duced an inside look at this role in the words of the former U.S. ambassadors to Mexico. It proves to be a treasure-trove of insight into not only the ambassador’s role, but also how the relationship itself has worked at key junctures from an inside perspective. It turns out that the ambassadors have been neither proconsuls nor simple in- struments of larger political designs. Each has imprinted his own personal style on the job, bringing different strengths and weaknesses to the diplomatic dance be- tween the two governments. But each has also had to operate within the constraints of larger policy designs set by the two governments and respond to unexpected 3 U.S. AMBASSADORS TO MEXICO crises. Indeed, if anything, the U.S. ambassadors’ in Mexico most important role may actually be in trying to manage and give some semblance of coherence to the- multiple tracks of engagement between the two countries. Especially as the policy worlds of the two countries have become increasingly more engaged with each other, ambassadors spend much of their time managing very different strands of the relationship each with its own dynamics – relations on environmental issues,trade, security, migration, and agriculture; differing priorities from executive branch agencies, Members of Congress, governors, mayors, business leaders, and NGOs. They try to make sure the way these pieces work together fits into the broader policy framework, and they try to keep track of the multiple direct bilateral encounters as they take place. Much of this work is routine – keeping in touch with the right people, weighing in on policies that affect the relationship, and smoothing over communications.