About Margaret Heckler
Margaret Mary Heckler was an American politician and diplomat who represented Massachusetts's 10th congressional district in the United States House of Representatives from 1967 until 1983. A member of the Republican Party, she also served as the 15th United States secretary of health and human services from 1983 to 1985, as well as United States ambassador to Ireland from 1986 to 1989. In 1967, when she was first elected, Heckler was one of only 11 women in Congress. In 1974, as a member of the Banking and Currency Committee, Heckler authored the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, giving women the right to seek credit in their own names for the first time in American history. At the Republican National Convention in 1980, Heckler urged then presidential nominee Ronald Reagan to put the first woman on the Supreme Court. Heckler won her first term in 1966 by defeating 42-year incumbent Republican Joseph W.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.