"In the late 1920s and early 1930s "Bishop Cannon" became a household word in much of America. Methodist bishop James Cannon, Jr., was probably the most influential southern churchman between the Civil War and World War II and certainly the most controversial. A paradoxical figure, he seemed as comfortable in the secular world of business and public affairs as in the church, and critics condemned him as an exemplar of the materialistic values of the 1920s."--BOOK JACKET.

"Plunging into politics in Virginia and the nation to secure and protect prohibition, he dramatically broke the southern taboo against preachers in politics."--BOOK JACKET.

"Celebrated by his followers as Protestant America's foremost champion, he was denounced by critics for his anti-Catholicism and nativism. Beginning in 1929, political enemies and disaffected churchmen, notably Senator Carter Glass of Virginia, accused Cannon of stock-market gambling, adultery, and embezzling campaign funds. For the next five years, the bishop became the center of a series of scandals that generated sensational newspaper headlines across the country."--BOOK JACKET.

"Based on exhaustive research in private papers, many overlooked by earlier writers or only recently made available, Prohibition and Politics reexamines Cannon's long and controversial career as a churchman, reformer and politician."--BOOK JACKET.