This article is from the source 'nytimes' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/02/world/americas/obama-plans-to-nominate-roberta-jacobson-to-be-ambassador-to-mexico.html

The article has changed 3 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 0 Version 1
Obama Plans to Nominate Roberta Jacobson to Be Ambassador to Mexico Obama Plans to Nominate Roberta Jacobson to Be Ambassador to Mexico
(about 3 hours later)
WASHINGTON — President Obama intends to nominate Roberta S. Jacobson, the top State Department official for Latin America, to be the United States ambassador to Mexico, the White House said on Monday. WASHINGTON — President Obama will nominate Roberta S. Jacobson, the top State Department official for Latin America and his point person in negotiations to re-establish diplomatic ties with Cuba, to be the United States ambassador to Mexico, the White House said on Monday.
Ms. Jacobson, a Mexico specialist who rose through the ranks of the State Department as a career diplomat, has been at the center of Mr. Obama’s overhaul of American policy toward Cuba, leading negotiations to re-establish diplomatic ties with the island nation after more than 50 years of estrangement. In choosing Ms. Jacobson, 53, a Mexico specialist who rose through the ranks of the State Department and made the rare transformation from career civil servant to senior diplomat, Mr. Obama turned to a trusted official with allies in both political parties whose résumé seems tailor-made for the post.
Her nomination suggests that the talks on opening embassies in Havana and Washington, the latest round of which concluded last month without a final resolution, are nearly finished. Over the span of both the Bush and the Obama administrations, she has handled every aspect of the delicate and vital relationship between the United States and Mexico, starting as the desk officer at the State Department and rising to the top post overseeing the Western Hemisphere.
If confirmed, Ms. Jacobson, now the assistant secretary of state for Western Hemisphere affairs, would be the first woman to serve as the American ambassador to Mexico. She speaks Spanish fluently and formerly served as deputy assistant secretary of state for Canada, Mexico and North American Free Trade Agreement issues, and before that as director of the Office of Mexican Affairs. Her work to restore diplomatic relations with Cuba could make her nomination a flash point for critics of Mr. Obama’s new policy. Yet her selection also suggests that the talks on opening embassies in Havana and Washington, the latest round of which concluded last month without a final resolution, are in their final stages.
If confirmed, Ms. Jacobson would be the first woman to serve as the ambassador to Mexico. She is fluent in Spanish and formerly served as deputy assistant secretary of state for Canada, Mexico and North American Free Trade Agreement issues. She also led the Office of Mexican Affairs.
The selection represents a change of approach for Mr. Obama in choosing an envoy to Mexico, the closest of American allies in the Latin world.
His initial pick for the post was Maria Echaveste, the daughter of Mexican immigrants and a former Clinton administration aide with no diplomatic background.
She was a strong supporter of the Democratic presidential contender Hillary Rodham Clinton and a vocal proponent of an immigration overhaul. Ms. Echaveste’s nomination languished for months without so much as a hearing on Capitol Hill. She withdrew her name in late January.
Ms. Jacobson, by contrast, has support from both Republicans and Democrats. But opponents of Mr. Obama’s rapprochement with Cuba may seek to block her confirmation over the matter, as Senator Marco Rubio, Republican of Florida and a presidential candidate, did temporarily when Ms. Jacobson was named to her current post. Asked whether Mr. Rubio would seek to do so again, a spokeswoman, Brooke Sammon, said only that he would be "closely reviewing" her record.
The current ambassador, E. Anthony Wayne, has kept a low profile, attending business and educational conferences. Ms. Jacobson, analysts said, was likely to be more comfortable engaging a wide range of Mexicans.
“She really has been the person who has managed the relationship, starting with day-to-day stuff on the Mexico desk and up to high strategic levels from the past decade,” said Andrew Selee, director of the Woodrow Wilson Center’s Mexico Institute.
Ms. Jacobson’s appointment will likely be welcomed in Mexico City, where she is a well-known figure with a reputation for a pragmatic approach to the recurrent frictions in the countries’ relationship. “I cannot think of a diplomat as well prepared for this as she is,” said Rafael Fernandez de Castro, the chief of international studies at ITAM, a university in Mexico City.
“Obama is sending us a top diplomat, someone doing a very important job for the administration and for Latin America and the relationship certainly needs someone like that. Mexico will appreciate that.”