Skidmore to welcome former U.S. Sen. George Mitchell

Former U.S. Senate Majority Leader George J. Mitchell will discuss his new book, The Negotiator, a memoir, when he speaks at Skidmore Wednesday, Oct. 21. The lecture, free and open to the public, begins at 7 p.m. in the Arthur Zankel Music Center.

Mitchell entered the U.S. Senate in 1980 and went on to an illustrious career that spanned 14 years. In January 1989, he became Senate majority leader, a position he held until he left the Senate in 1995. Earlier he served as U.S. Attorney and U.S. District Court Judge.

In 1995-99 he chaired 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 Clinton and Israeli and Palestinian leaders, Sen. Mitchell served in 2000-01 as chairman of an international fact-finding committee on violence in the Middle East. At the request of President Obama he served in 2009-11 as the U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East.

Sen. Mitchell is the author of five books. The most recent, a memoir titled The Negotiator: Reflections on an American Life, was published in May 2015. In 2008 Time magazine described him as one of the 100 most influential people in the world.