For a kinder, if relatively apolitical, appraisal of Chris Cox, look here.
He's got all the pretensions of a libertarian, but in the end is at his core, an extremely pro-corporate Republican.
What's curious is the way that he has lashed out against the rights of investors. Cox was at the center of legislation during the 90s that loosened corporate oversight and perhaps led the way to the recent Enron and Worldcom scandals and collapses.
The social security debate, as well as the fight over pension reform in California, have brought investment and retirement issues front and center. Is Cox, a legislator who clearly believes in less regulation and transperancy, the right man to restore investor confidence or does this pick reveal the true nature of these various types of "reform"?