John Walsh

John Edward Walsh (born November 3, 1960) is an American real estate agent, former politician and former military officer who served as a United States Senator from Montana from 2014 to 2015.

Walsh was born on November 3, 1960, in Butte, Montana.

He graduated from Butte High School in 1979, and enlisted in the Montana Army National Guard.

He began working full-time for the Guard in 1984 and received his commission upon completion of Officer Candidate School in 1987.

Walsh met his wife, Janet, while attending college.

They have two adult sons.

Walsh is a graduate of the Armor Officer Basic and Advanced Courses, the Combined Arms and Services Staff School, and the United States Army Command and General Staff College.

He attended Carroll College and received a Bachelor of Science degree in political science from Regents College of the University of the State of New York (now Excelsior University) in 1990.

In 2000, he led operations of over 2,000 Guard members during Montana's wildfires.

Walsh received a Master's degree in strategic studies from the United States Army War College in 2007.

A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as a colonel in the Army National Guard, the adjutant general of the Montana National Guard with a state commission as a brigadier general from 2008 to 2012 and the 34th Lieutenant Governor of Montana from 2013 to 2014 under Governor Steve Bullock.

In 2008 Walsh was appointed Adjutant General and received a state promotion to brigadier general.

A 2010 Army Inspector General report concluded that Walsh used the Adjutant General's post for "private gain" by pressuring subordinates into joining the National Guard Association of the United States in an effort to bolster Montana's membership numbers and enhance Walsh's candidacy for Vice President of NGAUS.

Walsh disputed the IG's report, explaining that it stemmed from a disagreement in interpreting the rules which govern when and how Department of Defense employees can take part in activities such as running for a NGAUS leadership position.

Walsh further noted that the NGAUS position was uncompensated, requiring him to travel to meetings at his own expense.

The report prevented him from receiving federal recognition as a general officer during his tenure as Adjutant General.

(Adjutants General are normally federally recognized as major generals in the reserve component of the Army or Air Force, provided they meet all eligibility criteria.) News accounts indicated that Walsh received a formal letter from General Peter W. Chiarelli, then the Vice Chief of Staff of the United States Army, in which Chiarelli reminded Walsh of his obligation to remain impartial in his dealings with non-federal entities, such as NGAUS.

Former Governor Brian Schweitzer said that when he received the report in 2010, he considered it "much ado about nothing."

Contemporary news accounts indicated that Schweitzer wrote to Chiarelli to state his confidence in Walsh's integrity and abilities, and to urge his promotion to the federally recognized general officer ranks.

He resigned in 2012 to run for Lieutenant Governor, and continued to serve as a traditional Army Guardsman (one weekend drill per month, two weeks of annual training each year).

He was appointed by his successor to serve as the Montana National Guard's land component commander, and he served in this position until retiring from the National Guard in December 2012.

In March 2012, Attorney General and presumptive Democratic gubernatorial nominee Steve Bullock selected Walsh to be his running mate.

The pair won the Democratic primary with 87% of the vote.

In October 2013, Walsh announced his candidacy for the U.S. Senate in 2014 to succeed retiring Democratic incumbent Max Baucus.

When Baucus resigned prior to the end of his term, Bullock appointed Walsh to fill Baucus's seat.

In August 2014, he dropped out of the race after The New York Times reported he had plagiarized portions of a research paper he had written at the Army War College in 2007, resulting in the college revoking his Master's degree.

He was succeeded in the Senate by Republican Steve Daines.

In July 2014, The New York Times, after receiving a tip from an opposition researcher working for the National Republican Senatorial Committee, reported that Walsh had plagiarized much of a 14-page strategy research paper, a requirement for the degree, with some material directly copied from sources without attribution.

Walsh initially denied, then admitted to the allegations, but stated that it was not done intentionally.

He claimed he was being treated for PTSD at the time stating, "I don't want to blame my mistake on PTSD, but I do want to say it may have been a factor."

The matter was referred to the College's Academic Review Board.

Former governor Brian Schweitzer wrote a letter to the board in support of Walsh, who claimed the plagiarism was unintentional and that he had been on medication for PTSD at the time.

On August 22, the board found that Walsh's plagiarism was "egregious" and "intentional" and that the paper was "primarily composed of verbatim liftings from other sources".

The board rejected his PTSD defense, noting that other students also struggle with PTSD and other issues but don't plagiarize.

An appeal filed by Walsh was denied, and on October 10, 2014 the College revoked Walsh's degree.

Walsh served in the Montana Army National Guard for 33 years.

From February 2016 to November 2017, Walsh was the state director of Montana's USDA Rural Development office for the United States Department of Agriculture.

He then began a career in real estate sales.

In this capacity he led 1st Battalion, 163rd Infantry Regiment in combat in Iraq.

He earned the Bronze Star Medal and the Combat Infantryman Badge.