Policy Radio | Senator Claire McCaskill on Representing a Politically Diverse State in a Divided Congress

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Claire McCaskill is a Democratic US Senator from Missouri, and is consistently ranked as one of the most moderate Senators currently in Congress. She serves on the Armed Services Committee, the Commerce Committee, and the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee. She has spent nearly her entire career in public service, previously as State Auditor of Missouri, Jackson County Prosecutor, and as a state representative for Missouri. She holds both a BA in political science and a JD from the University of Missouri.

This week, our Executive Editor, David Spearman, speaks with Senator McCaskill about the challenges of working in a divided congress and representing a politically diverse state.

This podcast was produced by Dan O’Keefe.

You faced two considerably different challengers in your two races for the Senate seat – one a conservative incumbent, and the other a controversial Tea Party candidate. Can you talk about some of the challenges that you faced coming from such a politically diverse state and how you were able to succeed in both of those?

I think in the first race, George Bush’s policies were certainly relevant. My opponent had been a pretty reliable party-line vote, and this was near the time when Bush’s approval rating was at its all-time low – a lot of dissatisfaction in the Iraq war. That race was about convincing Missourians that I would be independent, and that I would be willing to vote for them, not for my party, and be a moderate. I was helped a lot by the overall political climate at the time.

The second race was a little different. Some people had characterized my chances – I think one of the Republican operatives said, “My chances of getting elected Senator in Missouri are better than Claire McCaskill’s.” So there wasn’t a lot of confidence that I could win again because of the changes that had occurred in the political arena, especially in 2010 when we had the huge Tea Party surge. So in that race, it was not about do you want me, but really do you want this other person? Sometimes it’s about qualifying yourself, and other times it’s disqualifying the other candidate. My first race it was about qualifying me, and the second race it was about disqualifying my opponent.

Coming from such a politically diverse state, you must often have to choose between staying true to your party and those who voted for you versus representing the state as a whole. So how do you view your role as a Senator of Missouri?

Well it’s interesting. There are times when I don’t vote with the majority of my party. Typically that has been on matters dealing with appropriations and funding. I’m somebody who does think we’ve spent more money than we should have in the federal government. I thought earmarking was a really dumb way to spend public money. You know, sprinkling fairy dust in a backroom based on who you know and what committee you serve on didn’t seem a wise way to determine the spending of public dollars. In that regard I was much different than my party.

On the other hand, I’ve been elected as a pro-choice candidate for 30 years in a state that most people would say, “you can’t do that.” So that speaks to me in a way that allows me to realize that for the vast majority of Missourians, views on issues like that are kind of middle of the road. I think most Missourians don’t like the idea of abortion on the demand and late-term abortion. On the other hand, the vast majority of Missourians sure want rape victims to be able to get the morning after pill. There really have been very few times that I’ve found myself really conflicted by the politics of my state versus the policy I believe in.

Along those lines of policies you believe in, you’ve called recently for reforming the Military Sexual Assault Hearings, something that you mentioned can be politically dangerous for you. So how do you balance fighting for a policy that you really believe in and dealing with colleagues that are maybe concerned with that top-line, political agenda?

Well, none of us are without sin in this area, so I don’t ever want to be critical of my colleagues. Sometimes it is hard not to get distracted by what’s good politics as opposed to what’s good policy.

In this instance, probably because of my background, I am so comfortable and confident about the policy that I can put up with the politics. I don’t really think long-term most of my supporters in Missouri are going to think I’ve sold out to rape enabling commanders in the military. I think they know me better than that. I don’t know about blogs across the country, and I don’t know about some of the victim advocates who have really decided I am wrong. But I think that Missourians know that if they ran an ad that said, “Claire McCaskill is soft on rapists,” it would go in that category of I’m not going to worry about it because people aren’t going to believe it.

You’ve done a lot to support bipartisan policy, both from the Farm Bill to strengthening security clearance background checks. Why have you been able to reach across the aisle when so many other members of Congress are set with digging in their heals behind the party line.

Part of it is because the state I represent. Sometimes I look at my colleagues from bright blue states and I’m envious because it’s so simple. On the other hand, I think they should be jealous of me because because of the state I represent, I have, I think, an obligation and a duty to try to bring people together in the middle. That’s fascinating work to do. It’s challenging, but it’s fascinating.

So when I first came to Washington, I began working with some of my Republican colleagues, and I’ve built up friendships. There is a level of trust, not just with some of my women colleagues, but of my male colleagues that are Republicans. So when they have something they want to do, and they’re looking for bipartisan support too, they’re knocking on my door. Sometimes I say, “Thanks, but no thanks.” Pat Toomey has come four or five times and four of the five times I’ve said, “No I don’t think so,” but once I said, “Yeah, let’s do that!” So I think because of the fact that they see me as kind of willing to kind of go against the grain, they’re more likely to seek me out and see if I want to be a cosponsor.

Because, you know, Pat Toomey is a red senator in a purple state. So is Rob Portman. So is Mark Kirk. So you have my situation but on the other side of the table, and they’re also looking for ways that they can work in a bipartisan manner.

Feature Photo: cc/(Harris Walker)