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José López Portillo y Pacheco
President of Mexico
In office December 1, 1976 – November 30, 1982
Preceded by	Luis Echeverría
Succeeded by	Miguel de la Madrid
Born	June 16, 1920(1920-06-16) Mexico City
Died	February 17, 2004 (aged 83) Mexico City
Nationality	Mexican
Political party	Institutional Revolutionary Party
Spouse(s)	Carmen Romano
Religion	Roman Catholic

José López Portillo y Pacheco (June 16, 1920 – February 17, 2004) was the President of Mexico from 1976 to 1982.

Born in Mexico City, López Portillo studied Law at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM) before beginning his political career with the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI) in 1959. He held several positions in the administrations of his two predecessors before being appointed to serve as finance minister under Luis Echeverría, a close friend, from 1973 to 1975.

López Portillo undertook an ambitious program to promote Mexico's economic development with revenues stemming from the discovery of new petroleum reserves in the states of Veracruz and Tabasco by Petróleos Mexicanos (Pemex), the country's publicly owned oil company.

López Portillo undertook actions which were highly controversial with respect to the international banking establishment. One of his last actions as president, announced during his annual State of the Nation address on September 1, 1982, was to order the nationalization of the country's banking system.

López Portillo was the last nationalist president to emerge from the ranks of the PRI. Subsequent presidents have all been U.S.-educated advocates of free trade (librecambismo).

His opponents internationally and domestically accused López Portillo of "rampant corruption," "excessive overseas borrowing," galloping inflation (which continued with his successor), and responsibility for devaluations of the peso.

His obituary in the New York Times referred to his well publicized generosity toward his one time mistress, Rosa Luz Alegría as "a symbol of the era's political decadence". He bought her a US$2 million mansion in Acapulco.

Presidential Succession

In the year leading to the end of his term as president, December 1, 1982, López Portillo personally chose two candidates as possibilities to replace himself, following the succession ritual established by the PRI party. One, Javier García Paniagua would be the anointed one if a man of greater political skill were needed, and the other, ultimately his successor Miguel de la Madrid Hurtado was chosen for his financial and administrative skills, deemed much more necessary after the devaluation of the peso in February 1982 and the subsequent economic.

Mauricio González de la Garza wrote a book during this time period, "Última Llamada" or "Last Call" meant as a wake-up call for a democratic Mexico. The publication of the book was a catalyst for change in Mexican politics. Among other effects the publication of the book brought threats and persecution to González de la Garza, prompting him to seek sanctuary in Falfurrias, Texas for a period of time.

Personal

José López Portillo and U.S. President Jimmy Carter during a welcoming ceremony in Mexico City (1979).

In 1995, López Portillo married his long time mistress, the Yugoslavian-born actress Sasha Montenegro. They had two children but separated years later. Legal battles erupted between Montenegro and the children from his first marriage, to Carmen Romano. As of 2005 legal battles over the fortune of the ex-president continue. It is claimed that López Portillo and Sasha Montenegro were lovers when he was President, and that her relationship with the President gave her considerable support in building her career farther into the 1980s.

He was the brother of late Mexican novelist Margarita López Portillo who died on May 8, 2006 of natural causes. She was the Director of all Film and Radio as well as Television under her brother and fairly responsible for the corruption of the time in many areas of the entertainment industry, which included the protection of Sasha Montenegro from the Press and her future in-laws.

He was the great-great-great grandson of José María Narváez (1768-1840), a Spanish explorer who was the first to enter Georgia Strait in present-day British Columbia and the first to view the site now occupied by the city of Vancouver.

Quotations

¡Defenderé el peso como un perro! – "I will defend the peso like a dog!" It earned him the nickname 'El perro' (The dog) and having people barking at him. 1981.

Ya nos saquearon. México no se ha acabado. ¡No nos volverán a saquear! – "We have already been ransacked. Mexico is not finished. They will not ransack us again!" September 1, 1982.

¡Mi hijo es el orgullo de mi nepotismo! – "My son is the pride of my nepotism."

En el mundo de la economía los paises se dividen en dos: los que tienen petróleo y los que no lo tienen. ¡Y nosotros lo tenemos! – "In the world of economy, countries are divided in two: those that have oil and those that don't have it. And we have it!"

¡Vamos a administrar la abundancia! – "We are going to manage abundance!"

Awards

External links

• KANDELL, J. José López Portillo, Ex-President of Mexico, Dies at 83 (subscription needed), New York Times February 19, 2004 - article by same author reproduced here [1]
• Mexico's ex-president Lopez Portillo dies, CNN.com, February 18, 2004.
• GUNSON, P. José López Portillo: Mexico's most reviled president, The Guardian, February 20, 2004.
• ILIFF, L. Few mourn ex-Mexican leader, Dallas Morning News, February 18, 2004 reproduced here [2]
• DOYLE, Kate (ed.). Prelude to Disaster: José López Portillo and the Crash of 1976, National Security Archive Electronic Briefing Book No. 115.