George J. Mitchell - The Negotiator: A Memoir

More from the Author

A Path to Peace

Writing is personal, but publishing a book is a collaborative process. In that process I have been helped immeasurably by many people, foremost among them Jonathan Karp, the publisher of Simon & Schuster. Jon encouraged and guided me throughout. Without him my notes would have remained just notes. I also thank at Simon & Schuster in Editorial Megan Hogan, Publishing Assistant; in Publicity Cary Goldstein, Vice President and Director of Publicity; Maureen Cole, Senior Publicist; in Marketing Richard Rhorer, Vice President and Associate Publisher; Stephen Bedford, Marketing Manager; in Managing Editorial Irene Kheradi, Executive Managing Editor; Gina DiMascia, Associate Managing Editor; Ffej Caplan, Assistant Managing Editor; in Art and Design Jackie Seow, Vice President and Executive Art Director of Trade Art; Christopher Lin, Associate Art Director; Joy OMeara, Design Director; in Production Lisa Erwin, Senior Production Manager; and Lisa Healy, Senior Production Editor.

My assistant, Ann Ungar, was invaluable in the preparation of the manuscriptand in nearly every other aspect of my life! She is attentive to both detail and nuance.

While serving in public office I was fortunate to have help from many talented persons on my staffs. Not all are mentioned in this book, although all deserve my gratitude for their contributions to the causes I served. In the Senate I was ably assisted by, among others, Rich Arenberg, Jan Welch Barrett, Bob Bean, Donna Beck, Larry Benoit, Tom Bertocci, Sandy Brown, Judy Cadorette, Paul Carliner, Bob Carolla, Jim Case, Gayle Fitzgerald Cory, Kelly Currie, Bob Davison, Diane Dewhirst, Tom Gallagher, Steve Hart, Mike Hastings, Beverly Bustin Hathaway, John Hilley, Kelly Riordan Horowitz, Charlie Jacobs, Anita Jensen, David Johnson, Kate Kimball, Charles Kinney, Margaret Malia Kneeland, Estelle Lavoie, Mary Leblanc, David Lemoine, Clyde Macdonald, Sandy Vigue Martin, Mary McAleney, Sandy Moore, Gary Myrick, Lisa Nolan, Brett OBrien, Janie OConnor, Marty Paone, Jeff Peterson, Martha Pope, Jeff Porter, Grace Reef, Bob Rozen, Abby Safold, Pat Sarcone, Sarah Sewall, Diane Smith, Charlene Sturbitts, Sharon Sudbay, Regina Sullivan, Kim Wallace, and Chris Williams. Anita, Larry, and Bob Rozen were also helpful in reviewing portions of this book.

Martha Pope joined me in Northern Ireland, where I was also assisted by Kelly Currie and David Pozorski. Kelly was also with me on my first tour of duty in the Middle East, along with Jim Pickup and Fred Hof. Fred returned for my second tour in that region, where I was also helped by several able officials in the State Department and in the Executive Office; they include Jeff Feltman, David Hale, Gloria Hubbard, Payton Knopf, Prem Kumar, Janice Neal, Julia Reed, Mara Rudman, Alon Sachar, Jonathan Schwartz, Dan Shapiro, and Jake Sullivan.

Throughout my life I have benefited greatly from a close and loving family. It began with my parents and siblings; how much they meant to me is clear from the early pages of this book. It continues today with my patient and supportive wife, Heather; my children, Andrea, Andrew, and Claire; and my grandson, Ian. I love and thank them all.

Mount Desert Island, Maine

2014

ALSO BY GEORGE J. MITCHELL

World on Fire: Saving an Endangered Earth

Not for America Alone: The Triumph of Democracy and the Fall of Communism

Making Peace

Men of Zeal: A Candid Inside Story of the Iran-Contra Hearings (with Senator William S. Cohen)

George J. Mitchell served as a U.S. attorney and a U.S. district court judge before entering the U.S. Senate in 1980. In 1989 he became Senate majority leader, a position he held until he left the Senate in 1995.

In 199599 he chaired successful peace negotiations in Northern Ireland, for which he received numerous awards and honors, including the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor the U.S. government can give; the Philadelphia Liberty Medal; the Truman Institute Peace Prize; the German (Hesse) Peace Prize; and the United Nations (UNESCO) Peace Prize. At the request of President Bill Clinton and Israeli and Palestinian leaders, Senator Mitchell served in 20002001 as chairman of an international fact-finding committee on violence in the Middle East. At the request of President Barack Obama he served in 200911 as the U.S. special envoy for Middle East Peace.

He was chairman of the board of the Walt Disney Company and chairman of the International Crisis Group, a nonprofit organization dedicated to the prevention of crises. He also served as chancellor of Queens University of Belfast, Northern Ireland.

In 2008 Time named him one of the one hundred most influential people in the world.

MEET THE AUTHORS, WATCH VIDEOS AND MORE AT

SimonandSchuster.com

authors.simonandschuster.com/George-Mitchell

Her eyes conveyed the transcendent beauty that came from within: a heart filled with love and a life lived to help others. All that I have done, all that I am, I owe to my mother, the most influential person in my life.

AUTHORS NOTE

In the summer of 2011, with relief and a renewed sense of appreciation, I returned with my family to our home on Mount Desert Island, just off the coast of Maine. I had just completed my service as the U.S. envoy for Middle East peace after two and a half difficult and disappointing years. Although I had for years summered on the island, it now seemed new and fresh and comforting.

Going through familiar routines and attending events as I had in the past was also comforting. One such event was a meeting with Maine students at which I was asked to talk about my life. You dont have to prepare anything, just get up and talk from your heart, I was told. Thats what I did. Without any notes or preparation of any kind, I told stories and answered questions about my life, mostly about growing up in Maine. The next morning I woke up early, sat at my desk, and wrote down some of those stories. Over the next few months I wrote some more. The result is this book.

This is not a complete biography. It is rather a telling of some favorite stories about my very fortunate life. Its also about the lessons Ive learned along the way about negotiation, lessons that have been central to my ability to get things done in law, in business, in the Senate, and in Northern Ireland.

After I retired from the U.S. Senate in 1995, I spent five years working on the peace process in Northern Ireland and did two tours of duty in the Middle East. These assignments, and others earlier in my life, took me to war-torn countries and exposed me to death and destruction on a scale that I had difficulty comprehending. The more I experienced of life outside the United States and away from Maine, the more I appreciated and longed for both.

In this book I mention only briefly two events that were an important part of my public life, the Iran-Contra investigation and the Northern Ireland peace process, because I have already written books about them. I also mention my work in the Middle East, but that deserves a full accounting in a separate book, which I hope to write in the near future. And although I describe some of the legislative efforts in which I engaged while in the Senate, they represent only a small part of my fifteen years of service there.