Otto Reich | |
|---|---|
 | |
| United States Ambassador to Venezuela | |
| In office June 6, 1986 – July 17, 1989 | |
| President | Ronald Reagan George H. W. Bush |
| Preceded by | George W. Landau |
| Succeeded by | Kenneth N. Skoug Jr. |
| 28th Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs | |
| In office January 11, 2002 – July 22, 2004 | |
| Preceded by | Peter F. Romero |
| Succeeded by | Roger Noriega |
| Personal details | |
| Born | October 16, 1945 [1] Havana, Cuba |
| Political party | Republican |
| Profession | Diplomat, Lawyer |
Otto Juan Reich (born October 16, 1945) is an American diplomat and lobbyist who worked in the administrations of Presidents Ronald Reagan, George H. W. Bush, and George W. Bush. Reich was born in Cuba; his family moved to North Carolina when he was fifteen. He graduated from University of North Carolina in 1966, and after a two-year stint in the US Army, received a master's degree from Georgetown University in 1973. After graduating, Reich worked for the state and federal governments in Florida and Washington, D.C.
In 1983 Reich began leading the Office of Public Diplomacy (OPD), which he helped establish. The OPD sought to promote the Contra guerillas in Nicaragua, through techniques described by the Comptroller General in 1987 as "prohibited, covert propaganda". Reich, described as "chief spinner" of the effort by journalist Ann Bardach, was not accused of illegal activity. The OPD was shut down after the Iran-Contra affair in 1987. Reich served as the Ambassador to Venezuela from 1986 to 1989, and subsequently worked as a corporate lobbyist for twelve years.
Reich was nominated by George W. Bush to be Assistant Secretary of State for Western Hemisphere Affairs in 2001. The Senate did not allow confirmation hearings, citing Reich's role in the Iran-Contra affair, and his advocacy as ambassador for Orlando Bosch, then imprisoned in Venezuela on suspicion of bombing Cubana de Aviación Flight 455. Bush made a recess appointment, allowing Reich to hold the position for one year without confirmation. He was subsequently appointed special envoy to Latin America. He resigned from the Bush administration in 2004, and has since run a consulting firm and advised Republican presidential candidates.