Cox, Edward Eugene

Cox, Edward Eugene

(1880–1952) U.S. representative; born in Mitchell County, Ga. A circuit court judge and lawyer in southwest Georgia, he went to congress (1925–52), becoming a member of the powerful Rules Committee and leading the Southern Democrats opposed to the New Deal. When the Federal Communications Commission charged him with violating federal law in 1943, he demanded their links to Communism be investigated. Despite public outrage, he remained in Congress, successfully blocking progressive legislation.

The Cambridge Dictionary of American Biography, by John S. Bowman. Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995. Reproduced with permission.