George Mitchell was appointed to the United States Senate in 1980 to complete the unexpired term of Senator Edmund Muskie, who resigned to become Secretary of State. He was elected to a full term in the Senate in 1982 in a stunning come-from-behind victory. Mitchell went on to an illustrious career in the Senate spanning 14 years.
In 1988, he was reelected with 81 percent of the vote, the largest margin in Maine history. He left the Senate in 1995 as the Senate Majority Leader; a position he had held since January 1989.
Senator Mitchell enjoyed bipartisan respect during his tenure. He served as Chairman of the Peace Negotiations in Northern Ireland. At the request of President Clinton, Prime Minister Barak, and Chairman Arafat, he served as Chairman of an International Fact Finding Committee that examined the current crisis between Israelis and Palestinians. In December of 2007, the Mitchell Commission released a report about the use of performance-enhancing drugs in Major League Baseball.
George Mitchell will give the 2nd Annual Michael and Kitty Dukakis Public Policy Lecture at MCLA on Thursday in North Adams.