A Woman of Firsts

The extraordinary story of Margaret O’Shaughnessy Heckler offers a rare view into the behind-the-scenes world of American politics from the 1960s through the 1980s. Her career spanned five presidencies: Johnson, Nixon, Ford, Carter, and Reagan.   The daughter of Irish immigrants, Margaret Heckler represented the American dream. She served as a congresswoman, a presidential cabinet secretary, and an ambassador—all groundbreaking achievements for a woman of her era. The fiery Irish Republican