Metropolitan News-Enterprise

 

Friday, May 17, 2013

 

Page 3

 

Moreno Says He Expects to Hear Soon on Ambassadorship

 

By a MetNews Staff Writer

 

Retired California Supreme Court Justice Carlos Moreno said yesterday he expects to hear shortly—perhaps in the next two weeks—whether he will be nominated by President Obama as the next U.S. ambassador to Belize.

Moreno, who has been of counsel to Irell & Manella since retiring from the high court in 2009, acknowledged news reports that he is being vetted by the White House for the diplomatic post.

While he has not been a foreign diplomat before, he told the MetNews, the position is not unlike those he has held before:

“As a judge and a lawyer I’ve had to listen carefully, consider soberly and decide fairly, and to speak in measured tones,” he said. “I think all of those attributes apply to being a representative of the United States abroad.”

Moreno said he has been to Belize once, four years ago with the Orange County Hispanic Bar Association. In addition to the public service opportunity, he said, the appointment would give him the chance to indulge his interest in Mayan archeology.

The country has about 900 Mayan ruins, he explained. It is also “a great area for diving and any kind of sea-related activities,” he said.

Moreno, who served on the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, the Los Angeles Superior Court, and the Compton Municipal Court prior to his appointment to the state’s highest court, explained that his wife is an avid diver, even though he isn’t.

 

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