is a Pentagon correspondent in the Washington bureau of The New York Times. In 2008, she covered the presidential campaign of Senator John McCain. Previously, Bumiller was a Times White House correspondent and wrote a weekly column, “White House Letter,” about the people and behind-the-scenes events of the presidency. Bumiller is the author of three books: Condoleezza Rice: An American Life (Random House, 2009), a biography of the recent secretary of state; May You Be the Mother of a Hundred Sons: A Journey Among the Women of India (Ballantine Books, 1991); and The Secrets of Mariko: A Year in the Life of a Japanese Woman and Her Family (Vintage, 1996).