Anita McBride, Former Laura Bush Chief of Staff, Joins APCO Worldwide

Washington, D.C. (May 18, 2010) – Anita McBride, former assistant to President George W. Bush and chief of staff to First Lady Laura Bush, joins APCO Worldwide as a member of the company’s International Advisory Council (IAC) and a senior counselor with Global Political Strategies (GPS), president and CEO Margery Kraus announced today.

"Anita's White House service spans two decades and three U.S. presidential administrations," said Kraus. "Her uniquely high-level expertise on a range of domestic and international issues will be a valuable asset to our IAC and GPS teams and a considerable benefit to our clients."

APCO's IAC comprises more than 50 recognized global leaders, including former elected politicians, leaders of business and industry, and academics at leading universities. IAC members provide counsel to clients on complex issues and opportunities influencing their organizations and brands. GPS is a separate team of senior international strategists whose political and diplomatic experience supports businesses, governments and NGOs on geopolitics, global economics and new market opportunities.

From 2005 to 2009, McBride coordinated closely with policy-makers and worked directly with agency heads, senior White House officials and members of Congress and their staffs to advise Laura Bush on her platform for advocacy of initiatives including education, global health and literacy, historic preservation, and youth development.

In previous roles under President Bush, McBride served as a senior member of the White House management and administration team and as senior advisor in the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of International Organizations, where she was responsible for recruiting American candidates for positions in the United Nations agencies. She was also the department's senior advisor to the secretary and White House liaison, managing presidential appointees through the confirmation process and overseeing the selection of American delegations to international summits and conferences. Earlier in her career, McBride was director of White House Personnel under Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush. She also was director of the speaker's bureau at the United States Information Agency. McBride has helped coordinate three presidential transitions.

"I am excited to join the APCO team and work alongside such significant talent," said McBride. "I am very pleased to have the opportunity to be part of this premier organization and use my experience to provide strategic counsel to clients at home and around the world."

McBride was a member of the U.S. delegations to the UN Commission on the Status of Women in 2002; the UN Commission on Human Rights in 2003; and the UN Special Session on HIV/AIDS in 2006. She served as an international election monitor in Afghanistan and Ukraine and continues to work on democracy-building efforts particularly aimed at increasing women's participation in the political process.

She serves as a senior advisor to the George W. Bush Institute and was recently named executive in residence at the Center for Presidential and Congressional Studies in the School of Public Affairs at American University in Washington, D.C. She is the current chair of the J. William Fulbright Foreign Scholarship Board, a member of the U.S.-Afghan Women's Council and a member of the Presidential Advisory Council on HIV/AIDS.

About APCO Worldwide

Founded in 1984, APCO Worldwide is an award-winning, independently owned global communication consultancy with offices in major cities throughout the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., APCO clients include corporations and governments; industry associations and nonprofit organizations; and seven of the top 10 companies on Fortune's Global 500. APCO offers services related to business, industry and finance; media, public opinion and society; and government and public policy. The firm is a majority women-owned business. For more information, please visit www.apcoworldwide.com.

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Contact:
Elizabeth Wolf
202.778.1470
ewolf@apcoworldwide.com