Duty: Memoirs of a Secretary at War is a nonfiction book written by Robert M. Gates, a former U.S. Secretary of Defense. It was published in January 2014 by Alfred A. Knopf. The time period is from 2006 to 2011, and includes the George W. Bush administration (2006–2009), the Obama administration (2009–2011), the Afghan war, and the Iraq War.  Narrated in first person point of view, this record of events characterizes Secretary Gates' personal interactions with the U.S. Congress, the Pentagon's management structure, some military bureaucrats and the White House staff under President Obama. This memoir is also the first to recount the Obama administration’s policy discussions and debates during Presidential cabinet meetings