Jere Cooper graduated from the Cumberland School of Law and began his legal career in Dyersburg, Tennessee. He served in World War I, rising to the rank of captain and holding the position of regimental adjutant. Cooper transitioned to local politics, serving on the city council and as city attorney, and later became the department commander of the American Legion of Tennessee. He spent nearly three decades in Congress, including a tenure as chairman of the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means, highlighting his expertise in fiscal policy and taxation.

Jere Cooper's political identity is marked by a blend of fiscal conservatism and staunch opposition to civil rights advancements, particularly during the desegregation era. His tenure as chairman of the U.S. House Committee on Ways and Means underscores a deep involvement in economic policy, while his signature on the 1956 Southern Manifesto reveals an ideological rigidity on racial integration. This juxtaposition highlights an intriguing tension between his roles in national fiscal leadership and local resistance to federal civil rights mandates.