De la Madrid Hurtado, Miguel, << day lah mah DREED ur TAH doh, mih GEHL >> (1934-2012), served as the president of Mexico from 1982 to 1988. De la Madrid was a member of the Institutional Revolutionary Party. A financial expert, de la Madrid served as Mexico’s secretary of planning and budget from 1979 until he became president of the country. When de la Madrid became president of Mexico, he faced severe economic problems that resulted from government spending and reduced income from oil. As president, he took steps to try to solve the problems, including inflation and a huge foreign debt. But the problems continued, and de la Madrid’s critics charged him with a lack of leadership.
De la Madrid was born on Dec. 12, 1934, in Colima. He received a law degree from the National Autonomous University of Mexico in 1957. He taught there from 1958 to 1968. In 1964 and 1965, he took a leave of absence to earn a master’s degree in public administration at Harvard University. He entered government service in 1960. Before becoming a Cabinet member, he served in government financial posts in the department of the Treasury and with Mexico’s national oil company. De la Madrid died on April 1, 2012, in Mexico City.
