The newspaper on Sunday said Bush wrote "one of the most consequential op-eds of the year" when she published a Father's Day column calling the Trump administration's zero-tolerance immigration policy "cruel" and "immoral."
The policy led to nearly 3,000 children being separated from their families.
Bush told the editorial board she saw it as a time when her voice could make a difference. The board said Bush told them she had also considered calling the Homeland Security secretary.
The newspaper had earlier named a U.S. Border Patrol agent as one of the finalists for the recognition.