Anita McBride, Mrs. Bush's Chief of Staff (Text Only)

Anita McBride
Mrs. Bush's Chief of Staff

Anita McBride was appointed Assistant to President George W. Bush and Chief of Staff to First Lady Laura Bush in September 2006. She first joined Mrs. Bush’s office as a Deputy Assistant to the President and Mrs. Bush’s Chief of Staff in January 2005.

As Mrs. Bush’s Chief of Staff, Mrs. McBride oversees the First Lady’s policy, press, correspondence, scheduling and advance, speechwriting, and social offices. Mrs. McBride directs the staff’s work on the wide variety of issues in which Mrs. Bush is involved — including education, youth development, women’s rights and health, historic preservation, natural conservation, diplomacy, the arts, and ending pandemic diseases like malaria and HIV/AIDS. As a senior member of President Bush’s staff, Mrs. McBride works with West Wing policy advisors on matters involving both the president and Mrs. Bush.

Mrs. McBride’s White House service spans two decades and three administrations. Under President George W. Bush, from February 2004 to December 2004, Mrs. McBride served as Senior Advisor in the State Department’s Bureau of International Organizations. As the Department’s Senior Advisor to the Secretary and White House Liaison from June 2001 to February 2003, Mrs. McBride helped shepherd presidential appointees for State Department positions through the confirmation process, and oversaw the selection of American delegations to international summits and conferences. Prior to joining the State Department, Mrs. McBride served as Special Assistant to the President for White House Management — overseeing six administrative and operational units in direct support of the President, First Lady, and White House Staff.

From 1987 to 1992, Mrs. McBride was Director of White House Personnel under Presidents Reagan and George H. W. Bush. In this position, among her many responsibilities, Mrs. McBride helped create the White House Internship program. Also under the first President Bush, Mrs. McBride served as Director of the Speakers Bureau at the United States Information Agency. She has helped coordinate three presidential transitions.

Mrs. McBride adds to her public service extensive management experience in the private sector. As projects manager of the Smith Kline Beecham Foundation’s flagship philanthropic program, she oversaw the “Science in the Summer” initiative — which, in partnership with Philadelphia libraries, encourages the study and teaching of science in the city’s public schools. In Washington, Mrs. McBride has been a management consultant for the American Automobile Manufacturers Association and an executive recruiter for the J. Naylor Cope Company.

A mother of two, Mrs. McBride is an active member of her community and a parent volunteer at her children’s schools — including at the Department of Defense School in Stuttgart during the McBride family’s time in Germany.

Mrs. McBride has been recognized with several awards for her service. In April 2006, she received the National Guard and Reserve’s Patriot Award, bestowed upon employers who are exceptionally supportive of their reservist employees’ military service.

The daughter of Italian immigrants, Mrs. McBride was born and raised in Bridgeport, Connecticut. She received her B.A. in International Studies from the University of Connecticut, and studied international relations and three languages at the American University in Washington and the University of Florence in Italy.

Mrs. McBride is married to Timothy McBride, senior vice president of government relations at Freddie Mac. They live with their two children, Andrew and Giovanna, in Washington, D.C.

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