Poindexter, Miles

Poindexter, Miles (1868–1946) U.S. representative/senator; born in Memphis, Tenn. Settling in the state of Washington in 1891, he practiced law and became active as a Democrat, then shifted to the Republican Party and served as a state judge (1904–08). He was elected to the U.S. House of Representatives (Rep., Wash.; 1909–11) and to the U.S. Senate (1911–23). Although he began as a Progressive, he opposed President Woodrow Wilson's international policies and became leader of the anticommunist "Red Scare" of 1919. He was U.S. ambassador to Peru (1923–28).