Deborah Fiderer
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| Deborah Fiderer | |
|---|---|
 Lily Tomlin as Deborah Fiderer |
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| First appearance | Posse Comitatus |
| Last appearance | Tomorrow |
| Statistics | |
| Occupation | White House Personnel Aide (Season 1, unseen), White House Secretary/Assistant (Seasons 4-7) |
| Portrayed by | Lily Tomlin |
| Created by | Aaron Sorkin |
Deborah Fiderer is a character in the NBC television series The West Wing. She is portrayed by noted actress and comedienne Lily Tomlin. The character first appeared during the program's third season.
After the death of President Josiah Bartlet's previous private secretary Delores Landingham, Bartlet was extremely reluctant to come to terms with her death fully by hiring a permanent replacement. Finally prevailed upon to do so by the White House staff, most of the proposed candidates did not meet with the President's approval. Although they were all highly qualified, they lacked the character and sense of humour that the President was looking for. In contrast, Fiderer was opinionated, strong willed, perhaps eccentric and in any case very much her own woman. During the interview with President Bartlet, Deborah revealed a history of Alpaca farming and a professional gambling career. Along with his wife, she is perhaps the character most concerned about preventing the President from being overworked in the light of his multiple sclerosis.
She was previously Debbie De LaGuardia, and worked for the White House in personnel. She was responsible for recommending Charlie Young to serve as the President's personal assistant, passing over David Dweck, the son of a powerful Democratic Party contributor. It was for this, and not for being a "whack job" (as the President describes her), that she was fired from her previous position. She is deadly competent at her job, and has managed to tighten the President's schedule considerably so that he can get more rest. The senior staff do not always appreciate her stringent practices. She gave the First Lady and Chief of Staff walk-in privileges (i.e., the ability to go directly into the Oval Office without an appointment), but apparently Bartlet begged to have his wife's walk-in status revoked, which Fiderer did not comply with.
She is a big fan of Harry S. Truman. Her musical tastes include Neil Young and his raucous band Crazy Horse.
| Preceded by Delores Landingham |
Private Presidential Secretary, The West Wing 2002 – 2007 |
Succeeded by Ronna Beckman |
| The Bartlet Administration | ||
|---|---|---|
| The President: Josiah Bartlet First Lady: Abigail Bartlet |
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| The Vice President John Hoynes (Seasons 1–4) Bob Russell (Seasons 5–7) Chief of Staff to the Vice President Will Bailey (Seasons 5–7) National Security Advisor Nancy McNally (Seasons 2–7) Deputy National Security Advisor Kate Harper (Seasons 5–7) Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Admiral Percy Fitzwallace (Seasons 1–5) General Nicholas Alexander (Seasons 6–7) |
White House Chief of Staff Leo McGarry (Seasons 1–5) C.J. Cregg (Seasons 6–7) Assistant to the Chief of Staff Margaret Hooper (Seasons 1–7) Deputy Chief of Staff Josh Lyman (Seasons 1–6) Assistant to the Deputy Chief of Staff Donna Moss (Seasons 1–6) Presidential Secretary Delores Landingham (Seasons 1–2) Deborah Fiderer (Seasons 4–7) Personal Aide to the President Charlie Young (Seasons 1–6) Chief of Staff to the First Lady Amy Gardner (Seasons 4–5) |
White House Communications Director Toby Ziegler (Seasons 1–7) Will Bailey (Season 7) Deputy Communications Director Sam Seaborn (Seasons 1–4) Will Bailey (Seasons 4–5) White House Press Secretary C.J. Cregg (Seasons 1–5) Deputy Press Secretary Annabeth Schott (Season 6) Media Director Mandy Hampton (Season 1) |
| These are the main characters on The West Wing. For a longer and more complete list of characters, see List of characters on The West Wing. |
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