An appointment to a local library commission, reluctantly accepted, may not sound like an auspicious event. For Nancy Pelosi, however, that 1973 appointment launched what would become one of the most influential careers in modern American politics.
Pelosi’s work on the commission led to opportunities for higher office until she eventually reached her position as the first woman to serve as speaker of the House in 2007, shaping politics and policy in the United States for a generation.
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