And now from the University of Chicago Institute of Politics, the Act Files, with your host, David Axelrod.

I love Claire McCaskel, the senator from Missouri and a really good friend of mine, because she is the quintessential combination of idealist and hard-nosed pragmatist.

All that was reflected in the book she published this year called Plenty Lady Like, in which she talked about her own journey in politics from a pioneering young woman legislator in Missouri to her days in the Senate.

If you want a little taste of what Claire and that book is like, take a listen to this.

So my buddy Claire McCaskel, the reason you're my buddy isn't just that you were one of the early and fierce supporters of Barack Obama, but you're just a damn good pal.

You're someone who is a great politician and unapologetic about it, and you kind of came by that naturally, didn't you?

Yeah, I was raised in a family that my mom and dad made me say trick-or-treat and vote for JFK when I was seven years old.

And that occurred in a small town that was not enthusiastic about John F. Kennedy and my parents were, it was notable to me at the age of seven that they were very involved in this campaign and that they were unpopular in my hometown because of it.

Did this cost you treats when you said it? Well, it probably cost me some treats, although we were probably so adorable they couldn't help it throw us some candy.

But it was not the first time and not the last time that my parents kind of put in the hard drive that working on behalf of candidates you care about is a patriotic thing to do.

I never told the politicians were lazy, no good crooks. I was never kind of poisoned that way. I think that's the reason.

Do you think that was because of your environment or was it because it was a different time? Well, both. Obviously, I don't think the cynicism was at the level it is now.

But I think also it was because my mom and dad were old fashioned patriots and thought that helping political candidates was their duty.

They not only helped them, they were involved in politics, right? A little bit. I mean, I think it, you know, some people that are here in Washington, they have quite a pedigree when it comes to politics.

I mean, my dad was a commitment in my mom. See in Chicago, that's like the highest. Well, not not Missouri, not in not in rural Missouri, particularly.

My mom ran for the city council and was elected the first woman on the city council in Columbia. But they were we would go to various political events.

But I think we say now that my mom and dad were never the type that got in the clutch, so to speak. They were never in the back meeting the hoyditoyity or they were just good old salt and salt of the earth.

We believe in this candidate. We're going to try to stuff envelopes and when your mom ran, did you do stuff for her when she?

I didn't really. I was embarrassed by her more than anything. She was my mom was really a character. I met your mom. She was a huge.

Yeah, you did. So you know, I do. She'd never met a stranger. Yeah.

Was not afraid to get anybody's face. And if you're, you know, if you're sophomore in high school, that's just an embarrassing mother to have.

So I kind of avoided her during that period of time because she was doing things when she got elected to the council. She did things all the time because we lived in Columbia, Missouri then in the school of journalism.

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