Earl Anthony Wayne confirmed as U.S ambassador to Mexico

August 4, 2011

The United States Senate has unanimously confirmed as the new  to Mexico. He replaces, who resigned in March following a dispute with Felipe Calderón.

Wayne's nomination had been pending since June, and in late July the approved the nomination. Before the confirmation he said “One of my principal objectives...will be to work with my Mexican and U.S. colleagues to accelerate the implementation of the activities to assure that we are achieving our .”

Wayne has previously served as the to Argentina and as the deputy ambassador to Afghanistan.

Speaking about the Senate's choice of Wayne as a candidate for the ambassador's role, Eric Olson, a senior associate at the Mexico Institute of the said “They didn’t want a controversial candidate. If you choose someone who is more of a political appointee than a career foreign service officer it can get caught up in the politics of the situation. [With Wayne] you’re not picking someone out of the blue or somebody that the committee is not familiar with."