Clara Ruth Hayman Holt

Howell Thomas Heflin of Alabama was one of the last of the Roosevelt-style Southern progressive Democrats to serve in the United States Senate. He is also one of the few politicians in recent history to have spent a career in the public eye and retired with his integrity intact. This carefully researched authorized biography details the life of a man who grew up the son of a Methodist minister, graduated from a liberal arts college, became a highly decorated combat Marine in World War II, and then turned to the family businesses of law and politics. He served as chief justice of the Alabama Supreme Court before going to the Senate, where he remained for 18 years. A large, folksy man, his engaging personal style masked a keen mind and political cunning that served him well in Washington and made him friends on both sides of the aisle.