Democratic Sen. McCaskill says she empathizes with Tea Partiers

Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill said she empathizes with Tea Party activists and their concerns on government spending.

McCaskill, who has fought for an amendment to cap government spending over the next few years, said that while she recognizes the anxiety of Tea Partiers, she hopes they would remain civil and factual in their engagement of the political process.

"Absolutely, I do," McCaskill said during a weekly conference call with Missouri journalists when asked if she empathized with the ralliers. "And I certainly empathize that the way we do things in Washington is nuts."

The Tea Party movement is conventionally seen as conservative, with many Republican lawmakers taking strides in recent months to express support for the movement.

"People in Missouri don't trust the government; it's in our DNA," the Missouri senator said. "I'm very respectful of that. There's nothing wrong with that."

McCaskill said that economic anxiety was a major source of the movement, and said she'd do her own part to address concerns over spending and the economy.

"I am just as frustrated as members of the Tea Party about earmarking and the way we spend money out here," she said. "And I'm going to continue fighting my party's leadership on it with every fiber and every muscle in my body."