Eleanor Clift is a contributing editor for Newsweek magazine. She reports on the White House, presidential politics, and a variety of national issues. She is currently assigned to Capitol Hill, where she is covering the war on terrorism and its many aspects, from the ongoing anthrax scare to the various pieces of legislation dealing with the continuing threats to the nation. Her column, "Capitol Letter," is posted each week on Newsweek.com and MSNBC.com.

Clift is a regular panelist on the nationally syndicated show, "The McLaughlin Group," and a political analyst for the Fox News Network. Playing herself, she has appeared in several films, including Independence Day, Murder at 1600 Pennsylvania, and Dave, as well as the CBS series, Murphy Brown.

Clift and her husband, Tom Brazaitis, Washington columnist for the (Cleveland) Plain Dealer, are co-authors of the book, Madam President: Shattering the Last Glass Ceiling (Scribner 2000), which tracks the rise of women in politi