Women, Politics and Leadership: Taking Risks is "Ladylike"

Sen. Claire McCaskill became the first woman elected to the U.S. Senate from Missouri in 2006. She has spent much of her career in public service, serving six years in the Missouri State House of Representatives and seven as Missouri state auditor. McCaskill began her career as an assistant prosecutor in Kansas City. She was one of the few women who handled criminal cases and later became the first woman elected Jackson County prosecutor. She is serving her second term in the U.S. Senate, where she is recognized for working on government fiscal accountability, confronting sexual assault in the military and as a champion of reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act. She serves as a senior member of the Armed Services Committee and was named chair of the Commerce Subcommittee on Consumer Protection. Mary Louise Smith Chair for Women and Politics