New U.S. Ambassadors to Latin America
This month, three new U.S. ambassadors to Latin American countries were confirmed. On August 5th, the U.S. Senate voted to confirm Rose Likins to be Ambassador to Peru and Peter Michael McKinley to be Ambassador to Colombia. On August 19th, President Obama announced four recess appointments to key administrations posts, including Maria del Carmen Aponte, Obama's nominee to be Ambassador to El Salvador. Aponte's confirmation had been on hold for almost one year after Republican Senators Jim DeMint (South Carolina) and Jim Risch (Idaho) blocked her nomination because of a past relationship with a Cuban-American who allegedly had contact with the interests section in Washington, according to the Los Angeles Times. "At a time when our nation faces so many pressing challenges, I urge members of the Senate to stop playing politics with our highly qualified nominees, and fulfill their responsibilities of advice and consent," President Obama said upon announcing the recess appointments. "Until they do, I reserve the right to act within my authority to do what is best for the American people." Larry Palmer, nominated by President Obama to be Ambassador to Venezuela, however, must wait to be confirmed until after the U.S. Senate returns from recess on September 7th. Even if the Senate confirms his appointment, Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez may not allow him in the country. On August 8th, President Chávez said it was "impossible" to endorse Palmer, due to his responses to a questionnaire from the Committee on Foreign Relations in which Palmer claimed that the FARC maintain camps in Venezuela and that he is concerned about "Cuba's influence within the Venezuelan military." The United States does not plan to withdraw Palmer's nomination. "We believe that Larry Palmer, if confirmed by the Senate, will in fact be an effective ambassador and an effective interlocutor between our government and Venezuela," said U.S. State Department Spokesman P.J. Crowley at the press briefing yesterday. He also noted that Venezuela had not withdrawn their prior agreement to accept his nomination. Below are brief biographies of the four ambassadors recently confirmed, or awaiting confirmation, to take up posts in Latin America. Michael McKinley - Colombia On August 5th, the U.S. Senate confirmed career Foreign Service Officer Michael McKinley to serve as Ambassador to Colombia. McKinley served as Ambassador to Peru from 2007 to 2010. McKinley joined the Foreign Service in 1982 and has held various international posts throughout his career. According to his biography on the State Department website, Ambassador McKinley
served as Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Mission to the European Union in Brussels between 2004 and 2007. From 2001-2004, he served as Deputy Assistant Secretary in the Department of State's Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration. Between 1994 and 2001, Ambassador McKinley was Deputy Chief of Mission and Charge d'Affaires at U.S. Embassies in Mozambique, Uganda, and Belgium. Earlier assignments include U.S. Embassy London (1990-94), three tours in Washington (1985-90), and Bolivia (1983-85). Ambassador McKinley was born in Venezuela and grew up in Brazil, Mexico, Spain, and the United States. He did his undergraduate and graduate studies in the United Kingdom, and has a doctorate from Oxford University.
McKinley is considered to be an expert on Venezuela. His history of colonial Venezuela was published by Cambridge University Press as part of its Latin America series, and has also appeared in a Spanish edition. Rose Likins - Peru Rose Likins' appointment to take Michael McKinley's place as U.S. Ambassador to Peru was also confirmed by the Senate on August 5th. A career member of the Senior Foreign Service, Likins was deputy director of the Foreign Service Institute prior to taking over McKinley's post. According to the White House press release announcing her nomination, Ambassador Likins
was previously Dean of the Foreign Service Institute's School of Professional and Area Studies. She also served as the U.S. Ambassador to El Salvador. Washington assignments include Honduras Desk Officer, Special Assistant to the Deputy Secretary of State, Executive Assistant to the Under Secretary for Global Affairs, Director of the Department's Operations Center, Deputy Executive Secretary of the Department and Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary for Political-Military Affairs. Overseas posts include Consular Officer at the U.S. Consulate General in Monterrey, Mexico, Chief of the political section at the U.S. Embassy in Asuncion, Paraguay and Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Sofia, Bulgaria. She received a BA in Spanish and International Affairs from Mary Washington College.
As Ambassador to El Salvador under the George W. Bush administration, Likins was said to have interfered in the 2004 presidential elections in El Salvador by stating that the U.S. would "re-analyze" relations with the country if the Farabundo Marti National Liberation Front (FMLN), who during El Salvador's 12 year civil war fought against the U.S. backed government, won the presidency. Maria del Carmen Aponte - El Salvador Maria del Carmen Aponte was nominated by President Obama to be Ambassador to El Salvador in late 2009. Aponte is an attorney, former board member of the National Council of La Raza and former president of the Hispanic National Bar Association. As noted above, her confirmation was put on hold in late December, by Senator Jim DeMint (R-SC) and other Republicans, over her past relationship with a Cuban-American with an alleged link to the Cuban interests section. Last week, President Obama used a congressional recess appointment to bypass the Senate confirmation process and ended the eight-month long hold on Aponte. Here is the White House's official bio for Maria del Carmen Aponte:
Maria del Carmen Aponte is currently an attorney and independent consultant with Aponte Consulting and serves on the Board of Directors of Oriental Financial Group. From 2001-2004, Ms. Aponte was the Executive Director of the Puerto Rican Federal Affairs Administration (PRFAA). Prior to that, she practiced law for nearly twenty years with Washington D.C. based law firms. Ms. Aponte also served as a member of the Board of Directors of the National Council of La Raza, the Puerto Rican Legal Defense and Education Fund, and the University of the District of Columbia. She is also a member of the Board of Rosemont College. She served as president of the Hispanic National Bar Association; the Hispanic Bar Association of the District of Columbia; and as a member of the District of Columbia Judicial Nominations Commission. In 1979, as a White House Fellow, Ms. Aponte was Special Assistant to United States Housing and Urban Development Secretary Moon Landrieu. Ms. Aponte has a B.A. in Political Science from Rosemont College, an M.A. in Theatre from Villanova University, and a J.D. from Temple University.
Larry Palmer - Venezuela Larry Palmer, a career member of the Senior Foreign Service and former U.S. Ambassador to Honduras, is awaiting confirmation from the Senate to be Ambassador to Venezuela. As described above, his recent remarks on Venezuela angered Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, who said on television that "he can't come here, he has disqualified himself by breaking all the rules of diplomacy, by prejudging all of us, even our armed forces." The United States government, however, does not plan to choose a new nominee for the post, stating that Palmer "is still the best candidate for the job." According to the White House, Palmer
is a career member of the Senior Foreign Service. He is currently serving as President and CEO of the Inter-American Foundation. Prior to that he served as U.S. Ambassador to the Republic of Honduras and as Charge D'Affaires in Quito, Ecuador. He also served as President of the 41st Senior Seminar and as Assistant to the President of the University of Texas at El Paso. Overseas posts include the Dominican Republic, Uruguay, Paraguay, Korea, and Sierra Leone. Born in Augusta, Georgia, Palmer received a B.A from Emory University, an M.Ed. from Texas Southern University and a Doctorate (Ed.D) in Higher Education Administration and African Studies from Indiana University, Bloomington. Prior to joining the Foreign Service, Palmer served as a Peace Corps volunteer in Liberia.