This week, my selection for our Woman Crush Wednesday is the vibrant, energetic and extremely intelligent Rachel Maddow! There’s been a special place in my heart for Rachel ever since I first saw her MSNBC. To me, she’s far more than just an average political commentator and brings more to the table than the talking heads you’d normally see on cable news networks.

But what is it that really sets Rachel Maddow apart? Yes, she is openly gay but there’s also something else. When Rachel speaks, her words feel more genuine. She is passionate and confident. She is unapologetic for her views and has no problem making her feelings known. There are times I don’t agree with Rachel’s opinions but I don’t mind hearing another side of an argument if it’s delivered with the same energy and journalistic integrity. This being said, things can often heat up quickly as Rachel has been known to rip into Republicans and the GOP relentlessly. She has also been featured in an episode of The Simpsons! That fact alone is some major street cred in my books!

Rachel’s early career was in talk radio and most notably with Air America (a progressive talk network that aired from 2004 to 2010). There she hosted “Unfiltered” with Chuck D (yes, Chuck D from Public Enemy…kids,ask your parents) and Lizz Winstead who was co-creator of The Daily Show. When Unfiltered was canceled the following year she was given her own radio show; The Rachel Maddow Show.

Since her early talk radio career she was featured on the MSNBC show Tucker as a regular panelist as well on other news networks like CNN. In 2008 MSNBC first aired The Rachel Maddow Show and it saw unprecedented success early on. The show’s debut also made Rachel Maddow the first openly lesbian prime-time news host in the US. Rachel is a trailblazer and has since been a recognizable figure in the world of cable news. She has described herself as a “national security liberal” and tries to find a balance between partisan politics (an endeavor that’s difficult at best).

Rachel met her partner, artist Susan Mikula in 1999. They met while Maddow was completing her doctoral dissertation and have been together ever since. Rachel has also helped raise awareness for depression, revealing in 2012 that she herself has suffered from depression since adolescence. Rachel is an accomplished and respected news anchor and political correspondent. She is undoubtedly a perfect pick for our Woman Crush Wednesday Series!