Dan Balz is national political correspondent at The Washington Post. He has served as the paper’s National Editor, Political Editor, White House correspondent and Southwest correspondent. He is the co-author of two books, including the New York Times bestseller “The Battle For America 2008,” a narrative history of the 2008 presidential campaign. He is the recipient of the American Political Science Association award for political coverage, shared the Gerald R. Ford award for coverage of the presidency and received the Merriman Smith award for deadline writing about the presidency. He is a regular panelist on PBS’s “Washington Week” and a frequent guest on other public affairs programs.