| Bennett Champ Clark | |
|---|---|
| United States Senator (Class 3) from Missouri | |
| In office 1933–1945 Serving with Roscoe C. Patterson, Harry S. Truman |
|
| Preceded by | Harry B. Hawes |
| Succeeded by | Forrest C. Donnell |
| Court of Appeals for the D. C. Circuit associate judge | |
| In office 1945 – July 13, 1954 |
|
| Nominated by | Harry S. Truman |
| Preceded by | Thurman Arnold |
| Succeeded by | Walter Maximillian Bastian |
| Personal details | |
| Born | January 8, 1890 Bowling Green, Missouri |
| Died | July 13, 1954 (aged 64) Gloucester, Massachusetts |
| Resting place | Arlington National Cemetery |
| Nationality | United States |
| Alma mater | University of Missouri George Washington University Law School |
| Occupation | Lawyer |
| Religion | Presbyterians |
| Military service | |
| Service/branch | United States Army |
| Years of service | 1917-1919 |
| Rank | Colonel |
| Battles/wars | World War I |
Joel Bennett Clark (January 8, 1890 – July 13, 1954), better known as Bennett Champ Clark, was a Democratic United States Senator from Missouri from 1933 until 1945, and was later a United States federal judge.
The son of Champ Clark, a prominent Democratic Party leader of the early 20th century, Bennett Clark was born in Bowling Green, Missouri.
After graduating with a B.A. from the University of Missouri in Columbia, Missouri in 1912, he earned an LL.B. at George Washington University. He became parliamentarian of the United States House of Representatives from 1913 to 1917. After serving as a colonel in the United States Army during World War I, from 1917 to 1919, Clark began practicing law in St. Louis, Missouri.
In the 1932 election, Clark was elected to the United States Senate as a Democrat. Clark entered the Senate after Senator Harry B. Hawes resigned on February 3, 1933, a month before his term was to end. Clark was re-elected in the 1938 election, but lost his bid for renomination in the 1944 election.
Clark is perhaps most famous for declaring that Emperor Hirohito should be hanged as a war criminal on the senate floor on January 29, 1944. In the same year, he was the first senator to introduce the G.I. Bill proposal in U.S. Congress.[1]
On September 12, 1945, Clark was nominated by President Harry S. Truman to a seat on the United States Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit vacated by the resignation of Thurman Arnold. Clark was confirmed by the United States Senate on September 24, 1945, and received his commission on September 28, 1945, serving thereafter until his death. He died in Gloucester, Massachusetts, on July 13, 1954, and was buried at Arlington National Cemetery.
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