Catherine Ashton Emerges as a Key Player in the European Union

When Catherine Ashton was named High Representative for Foreign Affairs and National Security Policy for the European Union, the predominantly male foreign policy community harrumphed its disapproval. She lacked star power, and she had no background in foreign affairs. She’d been the EU’s trade commissioner, and before that she was in the Parliament as Baroness Ashton of Upholland, Lancashire, a coal mining community, where she grew up in a working-class family.

READ MORE AT THE DAILY BEAST