James Ferguson was brought down by his lunch.Full story: https://www.kvue.com/article/news/. It proved his undoing. This ragtag pair, better known as "Pa . James Ferguson. 1917: James 'Pa' Ferguson Jr., Texas. As historian Cortez Ewing pointed out, Ferguson was the voice of the people, and with his sixth-grade education, he promoted the idea that he had not suffered the damages of higher degrees. Legislators have accused Hall of abusing his power and targeting University of Texas, Austin President Bill Powers, while Hall maintains he was acting as a responsible regent investigating situations of clout and accountability problems within the University of Texas system. System has not protected the privacy rights of students, staff, and patients. When he was four years old, his father died. The entire process is substantially the same in Texas for elected officials, as it is for most of the other states. Dr. Ken Bridges is a writer, historian and native Texan. The campaign proved him to be a man of considerable native ability and the possessor of a captivating personality. The vote was 25-3. You have permission to edit this article. Ferguson was first elected in 1914, and was reelected in 1916. [12], [13] In addition, Cigarroa wrote: "During testimony before the Select Committee, some early witnesses implied that the U.T. Sam Houston was the first president of the Independent Republic of Texas , and he later served as governor of the state of T, Connally, John Bowden, Jr. American banker and politician (18711944), Brochure, "Meet the Fergusons: Two Governors for the Price of One", Bell County Museum, Belton, Texas, Lucadia Christiana Niles Pease (18671869), Learn how and when to remove this template message, "The Texas Politics Project, Governors of Texas, 12. The legislature then came back into session to consider impeachment, an attempt Ferguson immediately condemned. He showed up most every day to his own trial, invited or not, with two armed Texas Rangers as escorts. The Constitution gives Congress the power of impeachment in federal cases. In 1940 Mrs. Ferguson again sought the governorship, and for the last time "Farmer Jim" appealed to the voters of Texas. At age 12 he entered Salado College (a preparatory school) but was eventually expelled for disobedience. You can cancel at any time. His father died when he was 4. The colleges were permitted to begin building programs, and the educational appropriation bills were more generous than usual. He was a popular figure, singing laws protecting sharecroppers and providing state funding for rural schools. He served 15 months as governor. If the state legislature is not in regular session during the time of impeachment, a special session can be called specifically to handle impeachments. Advocates are pushing for legislation to help them. Though he had signed legislation creating three new. But the mere fact that Ferguson had been impeached and made ineligible to hold any office of trust or profit under the state did not in any sense remove him from the field of Texas politics. In 1917, James Ferguson was impeached and removed from office as governor of Texas while under indictment. Seven related to misapplication of public funds, one to embezzlement and one to the diversion of a special fund. Gov. 1914 campaign literature in which Ferguson fires back against criticisms from his 'dry' opponent, Thomas H. Ball, and others in the prohibition faction. The chair of the State Library and Historical Commission, Eugene C. Barker, heard talk about these plans and intervened in support of Winkler. In July 1917, he was indicted for misappropriation of funds. The chairman of the investigating committee, William H. Bledsoe of Lubbock, called for impeachment. Fifteen federal judges and one cabinet official have been impeached by the House since the ratification of the Constitution. The veto was retaliation against the university because of its refusal to dismiss certain faculty members whom Ferguson found objectionable, including William Harding Mayes, former Texas Lieutenant Governor and founder and dean of the University of Texas School of Journalism. Committee member Dan Flynn said he was not surprised by the findings and was pleased the university counsel reached a conclusion.[21][22][23][24]. The second had to do with his utilization of the Temple Bank he had controlling interest in as his personal slush fund. After returning to Bell County, he farmed and worked with a railroad-bridge gang until, after a brief study of law, he was admitted to the bar in 1897 and began the practice of law in Belton. {{start_at_rate}} {{format_dollars}} {{start_price}} {{format_cents}} {{term}}, {{promotional_format_dollars}}{{promotional_price}}{{promotional_format_cents}} {{term}}, Nebraska cheerleader competes by herself at state competition, but crowd doesn't let her feel alone, Elementary school music teacher leaves $6M to Baylor, Former NFL star Chad Johnson says he saved money by living inside Cincinnati Bengals stadium for 2 years, Mike Copeland: Steak and Ale comeback; Paper plant progress; Bagby apartments; Gaines Booked Up, Lake on Waco Creek floated for park next to Floyd Casey development, Whizzbang's owner buys Health Camp with eye to preserving burger joint legacy, Waco Charter School to close after summer classes, Sheriff names man found dead of apparent gunshot in Golinda, La Vega, Fairfield girls know the way to San Antone, clinching state trips, Brothers continue dad's clear legacy at Freddy's Glass, Brice Cherry: Collen pushes all the right buttons in her best coaching performance yet, Olympic-winning pole vaulter, pastor Bob Richards dies at 97, The GOAT of tennis families lives in Groesbeck. He believed that "a Negro has no business whatever taking a part in the political affairs of the Democratic party, the white man's party." Southwestern Historical Quarterly 86 (October 1982). Ferguson's attack against Mayes resulted in a drive by the legislature to impeach Ferguson. The charges were then sent to the state Senate for trial. The Constitution gives the House power to impeach the president, officials appointed by the president (including cabinet officers), and judges. The prohibitionists passed over their better-known leaders and gave their support to Charles H. Morris of Winnsboro, a political unknown. This is simply not true. In 1916 Ferguson's reelection seemed certain. Ouida Ferguson Nalle, The Fergusons of Texas, or "Two Governors for the Price of One": A Biography of James Edward Ferguson and His Wife (San Antonio: Naylor, 1946). The Arizona House and Senate impeached Mecham, a Republican, in 1988 after a state grand jury convicted him on six felony charges of fraud, perjury and filing false documents. The Texas House of Representatives prepared 21 charges against Ferguson, and, in his impeachment trial, the Texas Senate convicted him on 10 of those charges, including misapplication of public funds and receiving $156,000 from an unnamed source.[12][13]. Nine of the charges can be described as violations of the law, while the obtaining of $156,500 from a secret source was certainly not in keeping with good policy. After 20 days have elapsed from article adoption, if the Governor, Lt. The 1920 presidential election was won by Republican candidate Warren Harding. A part of his appeal as a candidate for governor was his support for white supremacy in the political process. In 1917, James E. Ferguson, nicknamed "Pa Ferguson," was impeached and removed from the governorship of Texas. Democrat James "Pa" Ferguson Jr. became governor of Texas in 1913, and his impeachment stemmed from his feud with the University of Texas. It appears that neither governor was brought to trial. The first and only Texas governor to be impeached is Governor James "Pa" Ferguson. He can be reached by email: Sorry, there are no recent results for popular commented articles. In 1924, unable to run under his own name, he ran his wife's campaign for the governorship against Judge Felix Robertson, the candidate endorsed by the Ku Klux Klan. The fact is that he had parked state funds in his bank for personal gain and he had run his bank as a one-man Ponzi scheme. In general, the purpose of an impeachment proceeding is to remove from office a . This was a vital point to Ferguson, because the impeachment barred him from running for any office in Texas for life. Therefore, that information is unavailable for most Encyclopedia.com content. Only two elected officials in the history of Texas have ever been successfully impeached. ." Ferguson cleverly resigned, claiming then that the Senate couldnt uphold an impeachment for someone who wasnt actually in office. Your donation keeps our trusted reporting free and accessible for all Texans and during a legislative session when lawmakers are set to tackle issues from school choice for K-12 students to school safety improvements to changes in property taxes, its critical that Texans know what lawmakers decisions mean for their futures. James Edward Ferguson Jr. (August 31, 1871 - September 21, 1944), known as Pa Ferguson, was an American Democratic politician and the 26th Governor of Texas, in office from 1915 to 1917. Five of the articles sustained by the Senate charged Ferguson with the misapplication of public funds, three related to his quarrel with the University, one declared that he had failed properly to respect and enforce the banking laws of the state, and one charged that he had received $156,500 in currency from a source that he refused to reveal. Then, copy and paste the text into your bibliography or works cited list. The accusations against Mayes were that he used his ownership of newspapers, including the Brownwood Bulletin, to spread negative information about Ferguson. His wife was defeated for re-election in 1926, following questions of improper use of her pardoning power. KVUE is looking back at the history of some past Texas governors. July 2, 20146 AM Central. Cities | In 1924, Ferguson entered his wife Miriam, known as "Ma", in the Democratic gubernatorial primary. [15][16] No unelected official in Texas has ever been successfully impeached or removed from office. Low 54F. Impeached: The Removal of Texas Governor James E. Fergusonreveals how power ebbed and flowed in twentieth-century Texas and includes several annotated primary documents critical to understanding the Ferguson impeachment. But the mere fact that Ferguson had been impeached and made ineligible to hold any office of trust or profit under the state did not in any sense remove him from the field of Texas politics . Texas History Minute: Jim Ferguson only Texas governor to be impeached, removed. She served two nonconsecutive two-year terms as governor: January 20, 1925 January 17, 1927. In 1935, the Fergusons lost their ranch in Bell County because of financial troubles during the Great Depression. There were . Other high-profile librarians voiced their support of Winkler, as did the son of an ex-governor, and a chapter of the Daughters of the Republic of Texas. [5], In 2013, the Texas State Legislature began an impeachment trial for Regent Wallace Hall. Ferguson was so enraged by the demonstrators that he got into a yelling match with one of the student protestors and had to be restrained from climbing out of his window to fight them, according to The Impeachment of Jim Ferguson, a 1983 book by Bruce Rutherford. ii) During the period between World Wars I and II, James and Miriam Ferguson were the most powerful couple in Texas. . Governor have not acted, then by proclamation of the President Pro Tempore of the State Senate. James Edward Ferguson Jr. (August 31, 1871 September 21, 1944), known as Pa Ferguson, was an American Democratic politician and the 26th Governor of Texas, in office from 1915 to 1917. She won that and the general election,[2] saying that she intended to rely on her husband for advice. He decided that the university president must resign, and when Vinson refused, Ferguson vetoed the universitys entire budget. By W.F. Governor and President Pro Tempore have not acted, then by proclamation of a signed majority of the members of the Senate. Oklahoma has impeached and removed two governors, and West Virginia impeached four members of its State Supreme Court at the same time in 2018. In 1924, unable to run under his own name, he Mr. Ferguson, known as "Pa", ran his wife's campaign for the governorship against Judge Felix Robertson, the candidate endorsed by the Ku Klux Klan. How to run for office | Only the governor can do that. That committee has been holding a series of meetings in late 2013. And she won. He was replaced by William P. Hobby after the Texas House of Representatives found him guilty in ten of twenty-one charges. State legislature | James E. Ferguson Called on Tejanos to rise up/support the revolution; Called on other minorities to join Tejanos to carve out a republic from land US took from Mexico US Pancho Villa Mexican guerilla leader led an attack on Columbus NM (Mar. 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