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He was known during the 1930s as a hardline rubber stamp for President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]'s [[New Deal]] agenda, gaining attention in 1935 for feuding with Sen. Long.<ref name=fleegler,pp.7-8/> According to Robert L. Fleegler, he "amassed a strong progressive voting record, supporting New Deal legislation such as public housing that gave many southern representatives pause."

He was known during the 1930s as a hardline rubber stamp for President [[Franklin D. Roosevelt]]'s [[New Deal]] agenda, gaining attention in 1935 for feuding with Sen. Long.<ref name=fleegler,pp.7-8/> According to Robert L. Fleegler, he "amassed a strong progressive voting record, supporting New Deal legislation such as public housing that gave many southern representatives pause."

Bilbo was the first U.S. senator to openly support the the Judicial Procedures Reform Bill of 1937,<ref>Mickey, Robert (2015). [https://www.google.com/books/edition/Paths_Out_of_Dixie/yqDwG2MBoNwC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=theodore+bilbo+court+packing&pg=PA153&printsec=frontcover Paths Out of Dixie: The Democratization of Authoritarian Enclaves in America's Deep South, 1944–1972], p. 153. ''Google Books''. Retrieved June 5, 2023.</ref><ref>Biles, Roger (February 24, 1994). [https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_South_and_the_New_Deal/Zp8fBgAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=theodore+bilbo+court+packing&pg=PA150&printsec=frontcover The South and the New Deal], pp. 150–51. ''Google Books''. Retrieved June 5, 2023.</ref> known as the "court packing plan," introduced by President Roosevelt to expand the number of Supreme Court justices for the purpose of immediate liberal appointments to reverse numerous [[judicial restraint]] rulings that struck down portions of the New Deal as unconstitutional. Bilbo told Mississippi voters:<ref>Kalman, Laura (2022). [https://www.google.com/books/edition/FDR_s_Gambit/gp6FEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=bilbo+one+hundred+percent+for+roosevelt&pg=PA112&printsec=frontcover FDR's Gambit: The Court Packing Fight and the Rise of Legal Liberalism]. ''Google Books''. Retrieved June 5, 2023.</ref>

Bilbo was the first U.S. senator to openly support the the Judicial Procedures Reform Bill of 1937,<ref>Mickey, Robert (2015). [https://www.google.com/books/edition/Paths_Out_of_Dixie/yqDwG2MBoNwC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=theodore+bilbo+court+packing&pg=PA153&printsec=frontcover Paths Out of Dixie: The Democratization of Authoritarian Enclaves in America's Deep South, 1944–1972], p. 153. ''Google Books''. Retrieved June 16, 2023.</ref><ref>Biles, Roger (February 24, 1994). [https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_South_and_the_New_Deal/Zp8fBgAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=theodore+bilbo+court+packing&pg=PA150&printsec=frontcover The South and the New Deal], pp. 150–51. ''Google Books''. Retrieved June 16, 2023.</ref> known as the "court packing plan," introduced by President Roosevelt to expand the number of Supreme Court justices for the purpose of immediate liberal appointments to reverse numerous [[judicial restraint]] rulings that struck down portions of the New Deal as unconstitutional. Bilbo told Mississippi voters:<ref>Kalman, Laura (2022). [https://www.google.com/books/edition/FDR_s_Gambit/gp6FEAAAQBAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=bilbo+one+hundred+percent+for+roosevelt&pg=PA112&printsec=frontcover FDR's Gambit: The Court Packing Fight and the Rise of Legal Liberalism]. ''Google Books''. Retrieved June 16, 2023.</ref>

{{cquote|You can put me down a thousand percent for President Roosevelt's court proposal.|||Sen. Theodore G. Bilbo (D–MS), cir. 1937}}

{{cquote|You can put me down a thousand percent for President Roosevelt's court proposal.|||Sen. Theodore G. Bilbo (D–MS), cir. 1937}}