Deborah Fiderer

From West Wing Wiki

Deborah Fiderer was the second Executive Secretary to President Josiah Bartlet.

She was portrayed by Lily Tomlin.

[edit] Professional Life

After recommending Charlie Young for the job as President Bartlet's body man, Debbie was fired from her position at the White House. To repay the favor, Charlie convinced Bartlet to hire her as his Executive Secretary after Mrs. Landingham's death. After a series of blundered interviews, Bartlet was left unimpressed, but after she was able to recite numbers from the day's global markets, Bartlet hired her. More trouble arose during her security screening when it came to light that Deborah had written a letter in which she suggested that President Bartlet's drink should be laced with poison to call attention to human rights crises. The President let her keep her job because he felt that she had shown respect for the office by referring to him as "President Bartlet".

Debbie is known for her dry wit and sometimes domineering personality. She is quite loyal to the President and implemented a series of rules and procedures to make his daily routine easier. She required that all senior staff members bring a copy of the daily memo with them to the staff meetings. She also re-wired the President's phone so that the line would go directly to her, allowing her to make the President's outgoing calls for him so he wouldn't have to remember them all.

[edit] Personal Life

Little is known about Debbie's personal life. She was married to a Mr. DiLaguardia, but divorced him. She once mentioned to Abby that she is not very religious.

[edit] Quotes

• President Bartlet: "I'm going to figure it out anyway. What I lack in memory, I more than make up for with

exceptional powers of deductive reasoning."

• Deborah Fiderer: "That come with tights and a cape?"

Preceded by: Dolores Landingham

Executive Secretary to the President 2002-2007

Succeeded by: Ronna Beckman