John James Rooney (November 29, 1903 – October 26, 1975) was an American lawyer and politician and as a Democratic politician from New York. From 1944 to 1974, he served in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Early life

Rooney was born in

Brooklyn Brooklyn () is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Kings County, in the U.S. state of New York. Kings County is the most populous county in the State of New York, and the second-most densely populated county in the United States, be ...

in 1903. In 1925, he graduated with a J.D. degree from Fordham University School of Law and practiced law following his admission to the bar the next year. He subsequently served as assistant district attorney in Brooklyn, New York, from 1940 to 1944.

Political career

In 1944, Rooney was elected by special election to the

78th United States Congress The 78th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It met in Washington, DC from January 3, 1943, ...

, to fill the vacancy left after the death of Thomas H. Cullen. He was re-elected in each subsequent election until opting to retire after the 1974 midterm election. He resigned from his seat on December 31, 1974, a few days before his term was to expire. He was once called a "frank torchbearer for the so-called Catholic lobby," for his support of American aid to Francisco Franco's regime in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

."Kennedy Would Resist Any Catholic Pressure", Drew Pearson (The

Bell Syndicate The Bell Syndicate, launched in 1916 by editor-publisher John Neville Wheeler, was an American syndicate that distributed columns, fiction, feature articles and comic strips to newspapers for decades. It was located in New York City at 247 West 4 ...

), as printed in the

Poughkeepsie Journal The ''Poughkeepsie Journal'' is a newspaper based in Poughkeepsie, New York, and owned by Gannett, which bought the paper in 1977. Founded in 1785 (though not a daily newspaper until 1860), the ''Journal'' is the oldest paper in New York state, a ...

, 7 July 1960, p. 6
Newspapers.com
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Death

Rooney died on October 26, 1975, in Washington, D.C.

References

External links

* 1903 births 1975 deaths Fordham University School of Law alumni Politicians from Brooklyn Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) 20th-century American politicians {{NewYork-Representative-stub