Maria Cino

Maria Cino, of Virginia, was nominated April 6, 2005, by President George W. Bush to be Deputy Secretary Of Transportation. Her nomination was sent to the Senate April 6, 2005, and she was confirmed May 11, 2005. Cino replaced Kirk Van Tine.

"Deputy Secretary Cino serves as the Department’s chief operating officer, responsible for the day-to-day management of DOT’s $61.1 billion budget, 10 modal administrations, and approximately 60,000 employees." 

Veteran RNC-Bush Political Operative Cino has a long history of making the rounds with the Republican Party.

Prior to her nomination, Cino served as Deputy Chairman of the Republican National Committee, where she succeeded Jack Oliver and "was the RNC’s top political strategist and chief operating officer, overseeing operations of the Committee during the 2004 election cycle." "In this role, Ms. Cino managed a $250 million grassroots media, mail and get-out-the-vote effort in all 50 states." 

Beginning in May 2001, she served in the Bush administration as Assistant Secretary and Director General of the United States and Foreign Commercial Service at the Department of Commerce. 

From May 2000 to March 2001, Cino was Deputy Chairman for Political and Congressional Relations at the Republican National Committee in Washington, DC, where she "managed a $250 million grassroots media, mail and get-out-the-vote effort in all 50 states." 

As National Political Director for Bush for President, Inc., March 1999 to April 2000, in Austin, Texas, she worked under Karl Rove. Cino was "responsible for hiring and supervising the national field operation, organizing the campaign’s leadership in the 50 states and territories, and establishing staffed headquarters in 22 early primary states." 

Cino served as the Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer of the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) from January 1993 to March 1997 with former GOP Representative Bill Paxton (NY). 

"Under her leadership, the NRCC was transformed into a member-driven organization. Her aggressive grassroots efforts have been widely credited for the 1994 sweep that restored Republican control to the House of Representatives for the first time since 1954." 

Prior to joining the NRCC, Cino was Paxton's Chief of Staff from January 1989 to January 1993. Cino "set-up, hired and supervised the Washington, D.C. office and four district offices." Cino had also been Paxton's Campaign Manager in his run for Congress from August to December 1988. 

Cino worked as a research analyst for American View Point of Alexandria, Virginia, a Republican polling organization, from January 1986 to July 1998. 

She worked for the Republican National Committee for the first time July 1981 to January 1983 as Political Education Program Director; January 1983 to January 1985 as Local Programs Director; and January 1985 to January 1986 as Executive Assistant to the Political Director. 

Cino first began working in the Republican political arena as Assistant Research Director with the Bo Sullivan for Governor Committee in Essex, New Jersey, January to June 1981. 

Cino was also on the board of Wish List and served as President of VIEW PAC 1997-1999. 

Profiles
From March 1997 to March 1999, prior to working for 'Bush for President', Cino was a public policy and government affairs consultant for the Washington, D.C. law firm of Wiley, Rein & Fielding." She received her bachelor's degree from St. John Fisher College, which she attended 1975-1979.

"Maria Cino was the Executive Director of the National Republican Congressional Committee in the 1994 and 1996 cycles and therefore gets major credit for helping win control of the House in the 1994 elections. There are maybe three people in the country who understand the ins and outs of Congressional Districts from Maine to California. Maria is one of them." --Rich Galen, April 12, 2000.

SourceWatch Resources

 * Bush administration cronyism and incompetence

Profiles

 * Mario Cino's Official DOT Profile.