Jean Becker

Jean Becker served as chief of staff for President George H.W. Bush for nearly twenty-five years. She’s the editor of Pearls of Wisdom by Barbara Bush; author of the New York Times bestseller, The Man I Knew: The Amazing Story of George H.W. Bush’s Post Presidency; and Character Matter … And Other Life Lessons from George H.W. Bush. Her current book,  Don’t Tell the President: The Best, Worst, and Mostly Untold Stories from Presidential Advance, written with Tom Collamore, came out February 3rd, 2026. Prior to her post as chief of staff, Jean served as deputy press secretary to First Lady Barbara Bush and was a newspaper reporter for 10 years, including a four-year stint at USA TODAY. A 1978 graduate of the University of Missouri, she grew up on a family farm in Audrain County.