“Oh,” he said, “I’m working.”
“What do you do?”
“I’m a telephone repairman.”
It took me a moment to digest that, then he added:
“When that fella from Boston runs out of quarters I’m gonna fix that phone.”
He then leaned forward and said to me, in a low and conspiratorial tone, “Senator, if I was you I’d go downstairs and use the phone there. I know it’s working ’cause I just fixed it.”
We went downstairs and called Marshall. He eventually arrived and we spent a pleasant hour laughing over the telephone story.
The wily and resourceful Mainer who outsmarts the big-city slicker is a staple of Maine humor. Another story I like to tell makes that point. Two smart young men graduated from Harvard during the Great Depression. Unable to find work, they took an old printer and rebuilt it so that it produced counterfeit twenty-dollar bills. This enabled them to live comfortably, and one of them bought a small summer cottage in Maine. One summer day the machine malfunctioned and produced a batch of eighteen-dollar bills. One said, “We’ll never be able to pass these, so I’ll destroy them.”
“No,” said the other, “I’m going to Maine next week. I’ll get them past the old guy at the country store near my cottage.” When he got to the country store he asked the old man if he’d had a good winter.
“No problems,” the old man answered. He then told the old man he needed a favor.
“No problem,” the old man answered.
“Can you change this eighteen-dollar bill?”
“No problem,” the old man answered again, “you want two nines or three sixes?”
Out my window the Cranberry Islands, and other islands beyond them, stretch like stepping-stones to the east, across the cold gray waters of the North Atlantic Ocean. Over the horizon lies Europe and beyond that the Middle East. For a half century I traveled to those and other distant lands where I met, talked, and worked with people of many languages, religions, races, and colors.
It has been a long way home. But no matter how far from Maine I went, I was at all times rooted in the place of my birth, my upbringing, my family, and my values. Fate and hope carried my mother and my father’s parents many thousands of miles, from Lebanon and Ireland to Maine. Here my parents lived lives that were very hard, but meaningful. They had neither wealth nor status, but they achieved their goal and their efforts were validated by their children. Because of them I have been fortunate beyond measure, for I have lived the American Dream.
In Northern Ireland I chaired three separate but related negotiations over a five-year period. In the Middle East I completed two tours of duty over three years. In one the result was a peace agreement. In the other conflict continues.
Both were long, difficult, and draining, physically and emotionally. The separation from my family, especially after Andrew and Claire were born, was especially hard. A parent’s love for his or her children cannot be understood until it is experienced. But, ultimately, both were rewarding because I was able to serve my country, in and from which I have received more than my share of benefits.
It is pure coincidence that my mother was born in Lebanon and my father’s parents were born in Ireland. But traveling to and working in Ireland and the Middle East enabled me to learn about my parents’ heritage: to walk the land of my ancestors; to meet the people among whom they lived; to learn of their hopes, fears, aspirations. It helped me fill an inner void that I didn’t know existed before I travelled to Ireland and Lebanon. All this I came to regard as an extra benefit from serving my country.
On the hundreds of long flights to and from Ireland and the Middle East, I tried to imagine my mother’s early life: what was it like for a young girl growing up in the hills of southern Lebanon? What was her parents’ life like, Arabic-speaking Christians living in a Muslim-majority land? I asked the same questions while daydreaming about my father, who never knew his parents and went from a Catholic orphanage in the center of Boston to the cold forests of northern Maine where, as a boy, he worked among men. I wondered about his parents: much has been written about the Irish immigrants who succeeded in the new land, little about the many who failed. Their lives often were as hard and barren as the huge rock formations of the west coast of Ireland. Had that been the fate of my grandparents and their parents?
On a recent flight across the Atlantic, I saw the sun rising in Dublin as the plane touched down. I was drowsy but my mind was awake with thoughts, dreams, fantasies, about those whose blood is now mine. I thought of stories of Ireland and Lebanon that always make me smile when they come to mind.
I was at a reception in my honor at a resort hotel just below the border between Northern Ireland and Ireland. A bridge between them had been destroyed during the Troubles. It had been rebuilt and was now to be called the Peace Bridge and named after me. The large and friendly crowd of well-wishers peppered me with questions about my father and his family. Most reacted with surprise and disbelief when I answered that I really didn’t know much about his family history; to them, history is a living part of the present. A couple of them suggested that I retain them, both in the business that specializes in genealogy, mostly for wealthy Irish-Americans. With a twinkle in his eye and a sly smile on his face, the host of the event, a local official said, “Senator, if you pay them enough they’ll connect you to Brian Boru” (an ancient warrior-king well-known in Irish history). We all laughed. In other words, it’s all hokum!
On the other hand, maybe it’s not. The other story is about my mother. When we were growing up she often said to her children, softly and with nostalgia, “You should see Lebanon. It’s so beautiful. The air is pure, the water is clear, the mountains, the forests, even the flowers smell better. Oh Lebanon, my Lebanon.” After arriving in the United States at the age of eighteen, she returned to Lebanon only once, late in her life, after my father died. My sister Barbara accompanied her as they returned to the village of Bkassine, where they attended a reception and dinner with relatives and friends in the house in which my mother had grown up. Late in the evening my mother was asked to say something. According to Barbara, my mother stood, paused, looked out at the large, happy crowd, and, with great emotion and a broad smile, said, “You should see America. It’s so beautiful. The air is pure, the water is clean, the mountains, the forests, even the flowers smell better. Oh America, my America.”
She had little formal education; she couldn’t read or write English and spoke it with a heavy accent; she worked her entire adult life on the night shift in a textile mill; but she was generous and loving, strong and wise, and she understood clearly the meaning of America.
To me, no one has ever said it better.
Oh America, my America.
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.
1. With Barbara and Robbie, 1939
2. With Johnny, Barbara, Paul, and Robbie, 1945
3. Mama and Daddy, 1950
4. I arrived late for the team picture at the Boys Club and didn’t have time to change.
5. Basketball at Bowdoin, 1951
6. U.S. Army counterintelligence agent, Berlin, Germany, 1956
7. Being sworn in as a U.S. district court judge by Frank Coffin, chief judge of the U.S. Court of Appeals in the First Circuit, 1979
8. Welcomed to the U.S. Senate by President Carter as Senator Ed Muskie looks on, 1980
9. At a Senate committee meeting, 1984
10. Campaigning in Maine, 1988
11. With Senator Ted Kennedy
12. Leaving a White House meeting
13. Sharing a laugh with Senators Bob Dole and Robert Byrd
14. With President Clinton, 1994
15. President Clinton awarded me the Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian honor of the U.S. government, at the White House on St. Patrick’s D
ay, 1999.
16. Announcing the investigation into the use of performance-enhancing drugs in Major League Baseball, with Commissioner Bud Selig, 2006
17. As U.S. Envoy for Middle East Peace, with Vice President Biden, President Obama, and Secretary of State Clinton, 2009
18. Meeting with President Abbas, Prime Minister Netanyahu, and Secretary of State Clinton, September 2010
19. Our children keep us young. In Maine, 2005.
20. Heather, Andrew, Claire, and I returned to the Northern Ireland Assembly building, March 2012.
APPENDIX
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
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 O’Meara, 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 manuscript—and 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 O’Brien, Janie O’Connor, 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
ILLUSTRATION CREDITS
Numbers in roman type refer to illustrations in the inserts; numbers in italics refer to book pages.
Courtesy of George J. Mitchell Papers, Bowdoin College Library, Brunswick, Maine: v, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10, 17
Author’s collection: 1, 2, 3, 6, 11, 12, 13, 19, 20, 380
Official White House Photo: 14, 15
© PETER FOLEY/Reuters/Corbis: 16
State Department Photo by Michael Gross: 18
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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 1995–99 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 2000–2001 as chairman of an international fact-finding committee on violence in the Middle East. At the request of President Barack Obama he served in 2009–11 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 Queen’s 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
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)
We hope you enjoyed reading this Simon & Schuster eBook.
* * *
Join our mailing list and get updates on new releases, deals, bonus content and other great books from Simon & Schuster.
CLICK HERE TO SIGN UP
or visit us online to sign up at
eBookNews.SimonandSchuster.com
NOTES
THE SENATE YEARS
1. Michael D’Antonio, “Senator for a Year, Mitchell, Still Unknown at Home,” Maine Sunday Telegram, May 17, 1981.
2. William S. Cohen and George J. Mitchell, Men of Zeal: A Candid Inside Story of the Iran-Contra Hearings (New York: Viking, 1988).
3. Ibid., 183–93. One of the many ironies that emerged in the hearings was that North justified lying to Congress because he “had to weigh in the balance the difference between lives and lies,” and Congress could not be trusted with sensitive information. But in one of the examples he cited, the terrorist seizure of the cruise ship Achille Lauro in 1985, North himself was reportedly the source of the leak (183–86).
4. Ibid., 169–72.
5. Robert McFarlane, national security advisor, four misdemeanor counts of withholding information from Congress; Oliver North, National Security Council staff, three counts of accepting a gratuity, aiding in the obstruction of Congress, destroying documents; John Poindexter, national security advisor, two counts of false statements, two counts of obstructing Congress, and conspiracy; Richard Secord, head of the enterprise, pleaded guilty to one felony count of false statements to Congress; Albert Hakim, head of the enterprise, pleaded guilty to giving money to North; Thomas Clines, businessman in the enterprise, guilty of underreporting earnings and stating falsely on tax returns that he had no foreign accounts; Carl Channell, fundraiser, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States; Richard Miller, fundraiser, pleaded guilty to conspiracy to defraud the United States; Clair George, CIA deputy director for operations, two counts of making false statements and perjury before Congress; Duane Clarridge, CIA European Division chief, indicted on seven counts of perjury and false statements; Alan Fiers Jr., CIA Central American Task Force chief, pleaded guilty to two counts of withholding information from Congress; Joseph Fernandez, CIA station chief in San Jose, Costa Rica, four-count conspi
racy indictment issued in Virginia, dropped because of failure of attorney general to mandate disclosure of information relevant to defense; Elliott Abrams, assistant secretary of state for inter-American affairs, two counts of withholding information from Congress; Caspar Weinberger, secretary of defense, indicted on five counts of perjury, making false statements, and obstruction.
The Negotiator Page 36
