Senator McCaskill knows Republicans have pinned a big target on her back after their big successes earlier this month. 

Republicans took a statewide office away from the Democrats, ousted a longtime congressman, and built their majorities in the legislature.  Senator McCaskill says the votes show people are worried about their jobs and the national economy, and congressional spending.  She says voters expect congress to do what the people have been doing—tightening their belts. 

She says one reason congress is, as she puts it, “screwed up,” is because members spend so much time working for re-election.  But she is going to keep on being Claire McCaskill. “I’ll fight like a scalded cat to get re-elected,” she says, “But it won’t be the end of the world if I don’t”  She says she will not “cower in a corner” and avoid making decisions that might make some people unhappy.  In fact she thinks she’s been “pretty good” at not making people happy.

McCaskill says she has openly differed with the President on some key issues–but she says she remains loyal to him because he has done many things that have been good and should be admired.  She says can be loyal without being “blindly loyaal” and agreeing with everything he says.

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