Editing Huey Long (section)

==Legal career (1915–1923)==
In 1915, Long established a private practice in Winnfield. He represented poor plaintiffs, usually in [[workers' compensation]] cases.<ref name=hair89/><ref name="Brinkley p 14">[[#Brinkley|Brinkley (1983) [1982]]], p. 14.</ref> Long avoided fighting in [[World War&nbsp;I]] by obtaining a draft deferment on the grounds that he was married and had a dependent child. He successfully defended from prosecution under the [[Espionage Act of 1917]] the state senator who had loaned him the money to complete his legal studies, and later claimed he did not serve because, "I was not mad at anybody over there."<ref name="FDR"/><ref name="Brinkley p 17">[[#Brinkley|Brinkley (1983) [1982]]], p. 17.</ref> In 1918, Long invested $1,050 ({{Inflation|US|1,050|1918|2020|fmt=eq}}) in a well that struck oil. The [[Standard Oil Company]] refused to accept any of the oil in its pipelines, costing Long his investment.<ref>[[#White|White (2006)]], pp. 60–61.</ref> This episode served as the catalyst for Long's lifelong hatred of Standard Oil.<ref>[[#White|White (2006)]], pp. 19, 61.</ref>
[[File:Huey Long for Railroad Commissioner.png|thumb|upright=0.8|alt=A card sporting Long's face surrounded by the text, "I respectfully ask for your vote for railroad commissioner, Huey P. Long"|Card for Long's 1918 campaign for railroad commissioner]]
That same year, Long entered the race to serve on the three-seat [[Louisiana Public Service Commission|Louisiana Railroad Commission]]. According to historian [[William Ivy Hair]], Long's political message:

<blockquote>... would be repeated until the end of his days: he was a young warrior of and for the plain people, battling the evil giants of Wall Street and their corporations; too much of America's wealth was concentrated in too few hands, and this unfairness was perpetuated by an educational system so stacked against the poor that (according to his statistics) only fourteen out of every thousand children obtained a college education. The way to begin rectifying these wrongs was to turn out of office the corrupt local flunkies of big business&nbsp;... and elect instead true men of the people, such as [himself].<ref>[[#Hair|Hair (1996)]], p. 88.</ref></blockquote>

In the Democratic primary, Long polled second behind incumbent Burk Bridges. Since no candidate garnered a majority of the votes, a [[Two-round system|run-off]] election was held, for which Long campaigned tirelessly across northern Louisiana. The race was close: Long defeated Burk by just 636 votes.<ref>[[#White|White (2006)]], pp. 47–48.</ref> Although the returns revealed wide support for Long in rural areas, he performed poorly in urban areas.<ref name=hair89>[[#Hair|Hair (1996)]], p. 89.</ref> On the Commission, Long forced utilities to lower rates, ordered railroads to extend service to small towns, and demanded that Standard Oil cease the importation of Mexican crude oil and use more oil from Louisiana wells.<ref name=white48>[[#White|White (2006)]], p. 48.</ref><ref name="Brinkley p 18">[[#Brinkley|Brinkley (1983) [1982]]], p. 18.</ref>

In the [[1920 Louisiana gubernatorial election|gubernatorial election of 1920]], Long campaigned heavily for [[John M. Parker]]; today, he is often credited with helping Parker win northern [[parishes in Louisiana|parishes]].<ref name=white96>[[#White|White (2006)]], p. 96.</ref><ref>[[#Williams|Williams (1981) [1969]]], pp. 134–35.</ref> After Parker was elected, the two became bitter rivals. Their break was largely caused by Long's demand and Parker's refusal to declare the state's oil pipelines [[public utilities]].<ref name=white96/> Long was infuriated when Parker allowed oil companies, led by Standard Oil's legal team, to assist in writing [[severance tax]] laws. Long denounced Parker as corporate "chattel". The feud climaxed in 1921, when Parker tried unsuccessfully to have Long ousted from the commission.<ref name="Brinkley p 18"/><ref name=white96/>

By 1922, Long had become chairman of the commission, now called the "Public Service Commission".<ref name="Brinkley p 17"/><ref name=white48/> That year, Long prosecuted the Cumberland Telephone & Telegraph Company for unfair rate increases; he successfully argued the case on appeal before the [[Supreme Court of the United States|United States Supreme Court]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/260/212|title=Comberland [''sic''] Telephone & Telegraph Co. v. Louisiana Public Service Commission et al.|website=[[Legal Information Institute]]|publisher=[[Cornell University]]|access-date=February 27, 2021|archive-date=November 29, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201129153715/https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/260/212|url-status=live}}</ref> which resulted in cash refunds <!--totaling $440,000 ({{Inflation|US|440,000|1922|2019|fmt=eq}}) to 80,000 overcharged-->to thousands of overcharged customers.<ref name="sleazy">{{cite magazine|last=Kolbert|first=Elizabeth|date=June 5, 2006|title=The Big Sleazy|url=https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2006/06/12/the-big-sleazy|magazine=[[The New Yorker]]|access-date=July 21, 2020|archive-date=December 24, 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201224200231/https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2006/06/12/the-big-sleazy|url-status=live|url-access=subscription}}</ref> After the decision, [[Chief Justice of the United States|Chief Justice]] and former President [[William Howard Taft]] praised Long as "the most brilliant lawyer who ever practiced" before the court.<ref name=":0">{{cite news|last=Darnell|first=Tim|date=September 10, 2020|title=Huey Long assassinated 85 years ago|url=https://www.ajc.com/news/nation-world/god-dont-let-me-die-i-have-so-much-to-do-huey-long-assassinated-85-years-ago/4IJ5EAB5TZGQRI7WEHGVUG6LOA/|work=[[The Atlanta Journal-Constitution]]|access-date=February 27, 2021|archive-date=February 28, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210228192028/https://www.ajc.com/news/nation-world/god-dont-let-me-die-i-have-so-much-to-do-huey-long-assassinated-85-years-ago/4IJ5EAB5TZGQRI7WEHGVUG6LOA/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{cite news|date=March 9, 1930|title=Ex-President Taft Dies at Capital|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1930/03/09/archives/expresident-taft-dies-at-capital-succumbing-to-many-weeks-illness.html|work=The New York Times|access-date=September 3, 2021|url-access=subscription|archive-date=September 4, 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210904012334/https://www.nytimes.com/1930/03/09/archives/expresident-taft-dies-at-capital-succumbing-to-many-weeks-illness.html|url-status=live}}</ref>