James Wilson "Bud" Nance was a United States Navy officer who was the 10th Deputy National Security Advisor from 1981 to 1982, also briefly the acting National Security Advisor. A childhood friend of Senator Jesse Helms, he later worked as a Congressional aide.

Robert Carl "Bud" McFarlane was an American Marine Corps officer who served as National Security Advisor to President Ronald Reagan from 1983 to 1985. Within the Reagan administration, McFarlane was a leading architect of the Strategic Defense Initiative, a project intended to defend the US from Soviet ballistic missile attacks. He resigned as National Security Adviser in late 1985 because of disagreements with other administration figures but remained involved in negotiations with Iran and with Hezbollah.