Politics | Claire McCaskill Claire McCaskill Skipping Democratic Convention Aide says she needs to talk to Missouri voters By Kevin Spak Posted Jun 26, 2012 2:46 PM CDT Copied In this Sept. 21, 2011, file photo, Sen. Claire McCaskill, D-Mo. is seen on Capitol Hill. (AP Photo Manuel Balce Ceneta, File) A major Obama ally won't be at his side in Charlotte this summer. A Claire McCaskill aide tells Talking Points Memo that the Missouri senator will not be attending the Democratic National Convention, making her the latest in a line of red- and purple-state Democrats snubbing the event. But the aide insisted McCaskill wasn't avoiding the president. "In years when Claire is on the ballot, she has historically not gone to the convention, because she believes it's important to stay in Missouri and talk to voters," the aide said, adding that McCaskill didn't attend in 2004, either. Read These Next New York Times ranks the best movies of the 21st century. A man has been deported for kicking an airport customs beagle. White House rolls with Trump's 'daddy' nickname. Actor Sam Rockwell gets residuals from movie he wasn't in. Report an error