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Homer Samuel Ferguson (February 25, 1889 – December 17, 1982) was an American attorney, professor, judge,United States senator fromMichigan,Ambassador to thePhilippines, and later a judge on theUnited States Court of Military Appeals.
Ferguson attended public schools and theUniversity of Pittsburgh. He graduated from theUniversity of Michigan atAnn Arbor in 1913, was admitted to thebar the same year and commenced practice inDetroit. He was judge of thecircuit court forWayne County, Michigan, from 1929 to 1942 and also professor of law atDetroit College of Law (now part ofMichigan State University) from 1929 to 1939.[1]
Elected as aRepublican to the United States Senate in 1942 and was reelected in 1948, serving from January 3, 1943, to January 3, 1955. Ferguson successfully was re-elected in 1948 over DemocratFrank E. Hook in a year dominated by the Democratic party's upset wins. The election was contested by Hook, who alleged fraud; a subcommittee uncovered unethical practices in the election cycle, though it exonerated Ferguson, who was seated.[2]
He unsuccessfully ran for reelection to a third-term in 1954, defeated byDemocratPatrick V. McNamara.
While in the Senate, he served as chairman of the Republican Policy Committee in the83rd United States Congress.
In 1943, Ferguson was one of 12 senators who sponsored or co-sponsored the Rescue Resolution, which would have declared that Congress "recommends and urges the creation by the President of a commission of diplomatic, economic, and military experts to formulate and effectuate a plan of immediate action designed to save the surviving Jewish people of Europe from extinction at the hands of Nazi Germany."[3]
In 1948, he served as chairman of theInvestigations Subcommittee of the Committee on Expenditures in Executive Departments, which held hearings on such matters asexport control violations, for whichSovietspyWilliam Remington was called in to testify; the trial ofNaziwar criminalIlse Koch; and theMississippiDemocratic Party's sale of postal jobs, which Mississippians from rural areas attested to purchasing. On July 30, 1948, his committee heard testimony from ex-Soviet spyElizabeth Bentley. Bentley testified before theHouse Un-American Activities Committee the next day, followed byWhittaker Chambers a few days later – setting off theHiss Case, used by bothRichard Nixon andJoseph McCarthy for their own political agendas.[4]
Ferguson sponsored an anti-lynching bill, which was approved by the Senate Judiciary Committee in June 1949.[5] The House of Representatives had approved several anti-lynching bills. Due to opposition from Southern Democrats, no anti-lynching bill was ever approved by the full Senate.[6]
He introduced the Senate version of the bill that inserted "under God" into thePledge of Allegiance in 1954.Michigan's 17th congressional districtUnited States House of Representatives RepublicanCharles G. Oakman had previously introduced a House version. The bill became law onFlag Day, June 14, 1954.
Also in 1954, Ferguson proposed several amendments to theBricker Amendment.[7]
Ferguson served asUnited States Ambassador to thePhilippines from 1955 to 1956 and was judge of theUnited States Court of Military Appeals inWashington, D.C., from 1956 to until his retirement 1971. He served as senior judge on the United States Court of Military Appeals from 1971 to 1976.
In 1976, he retired and moved back to Michigan and resided inGrosse Pointe until his death in 1982.[8]
Ferguson's involvement behind the scenes in influencing the failed investigation, trial, and slander ofPreston Tucker by theSecurities and Exchange Commission has long been speculated. Ferguson is the main antagonist of the 1988 biopic filmTucker: The Man and His Dream. In the film, he is played byLloyd Bridges, who worked alongside his sonJeff Bridges, who played Tucker.
| Party political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Republican nominee forU.S. Senator fromMichigan (Class 2) 1942,1948,1954 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Chair of theSenate Republican Policy Committee 1953–1955 | Succeeded by |
| U.S. Senate | ||
| Preceded by | U.S. Senator (Class 2) from Michigan 1943–1955 Served alongside:Arthur Vandenberg,Blair Moody,Charles E. Potter | Succeeded by |
| Diplomatic posts | ||
| Preceded by | United States Ambassador to the Philippines 1955–1956 | Succeeded by |
| Legal offices | ||
| Preceded by | Judge of theUnited States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces 1956–1971 | Succeeded by |
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| Class 2 | ||
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| International | |
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