‘Intimidated and discarded’: Fired female execs go after top K Street firm

The story of how Shanti Stanton and Steve Elmendorf formed a decades-long work partnership is a classic Washington tale.

It started on Capitol Hill in 1995: Stanton was a recent college grad and Elmendorf was a top aide to Richard Gephardt, then the Democratic leader in the House. Elmendorf brought her on board and served as her boss and mentor.

Then it moved to K Street: When Elmendorf opened his own lobbying shop in 2007, Stanton became…