Christopher Cox, a member of the House of Representatives for 17 years (R-CA), was confirmed as head of the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 29, 2005. During his tenure in Congress, Cox was a vociferous proponent of hardline security policies. He pushed for intervention in the Middle East, supported missile defense programs, and hyped intelligence threats to the United States.
A member of the advisory council of the hardline Center for Security Policy, Cox's bête noire was China. In 1998, Cox headed the so-called Cox Committee, a House Select Committee that investigated the alleged Chinese acquisition of sensitive U.S. technology. The "Cox Report," released in 1999, added to the furor at the time of purported Chinese espionage in the U.S. nuclear weapons complex (the Wen Ho Lee scandal). The report alleged extensive Chinese spying in the United States and claimed that the country had obtained U.S. nuclear bomb designs. However, when asked to provide evidence, Cox repeatedly demurred.
As Chalmers Johnson reported at the time: "When asked whether he had any evidence for his cries of alarm or his charges against citizens who were given no chance to defend themselves, Cox invariably replied that he did but it was classified. He could not show it to us. As reported in the May 26 Los Angeles Times, when challenged on the number of Chinese 'front companies' mentioned in the report, Cox said he could not offer a specific estimate 'because the government's estimates are secret.' He had used the number 3,000, he said, 'to suggest the possible scope of the problem' and to make the point that the number 'overwhelms our limited resources.' Presumably, Cox meant that the U.S. government does not have enough Chinese-speaking FBI agents to watch and wiretap every store in America owned by a citizen of Chinese ancestry. In any event, James Mulvenon of the Rand Corporation, a specialist on the Chinese military's commercial activities, puts the number of front companies at between 12 and 30. In 1997, the State Department could identify only two" (Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists, September/October 1999).
The CATO Institute, a libertarian think tank, also leveled criticism at the report, charging that it had embellished the China threat, in part because the country had at most a few hundred nuclear weapons compared with the tens of thousands in the U.S. arsenal (see Michael W. Lynch and Jeff A. Taylor, "Cox Reports," Reason, August/September 1999).
President George W. Bush nominated Cox to chair the Securities and Exchange Commission in June 2005, after William Donaldson announced his resignation. The SEC nomination drew sharp criticism from activists and commentators, who pointed with concern to Cox's strong relationship to big business. Lee Drutman of the group Citizen Works argued: "Looking at Cox's legislative record, the main philosophy that emerges is one of doing favors for business, happily taking their campaign contributions, and then proclaiming that the free market works. (According to the Center for Responsive Politics, 97% of Cox's 2004 reelection campaign was funded by corporate political action committees or executives of companies and their family members. Since first being elected to Congress in 1988, he has received more than $254,000 from the securities industry)" (TomPaine.com, June 10, 2005).
In 1995, Cox sponsored a bill that would limit investors' ability to sue their companies if the firms were suspected of securities fraud. The bill became one of only two that were pushed through after a Clinton veto (Los Angeles Times, June 3, 2005).
After obtaining dual degrees at Harvard in business and law, Cox worked as a clerk in the U.S. Court of Appeals before becoming an associate at the law firm of Latham & Watkins, which specializes in international corporate law. He then returned to Harvard for a couple of years to teach federal tax law before returning to the firm as a partner.
Cox served as chairman of the Homeland Security Committee in the House. Like many congressional members, Cox supported the war on terrorism and the Iraq War. Besides being a vocal proponent of both, Cox also supported the increases in defense military spending that George W. Bush sought, as well as allowing airline pilots to carry guns on board planes. Cox was pro-national missile defense and has no history of military service.
Cox got his first taste of government service in 1986, when President Ronald Reagan tapped him to serve as White House counsel. He represented the president during the Iran-Contra scandal before running for California's 40th District.
