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John Walsh (Montana)
John E. Walsh was a Democratic member of the U.S. Senate, representing the state of Montana. He was appointed by Gov. Steve Bullock (D) on February 7, 2014, to fill the Senate seat of Democrat Max Baucus after Baucus was confirmed as the U.S. Ambassador to China on February 6, 2014.[1] Walsh held the seat until his term ended on January 3, 2015.
Walsh lost his bid for re-election to the U.S. Senate in 2014. He won the Democratic nomination in the primary on June 3, 2014, but withdrew from the race on August 7, 2014, after reports surfaced that he had plagiarized large portions of his final thesis for the United States Army War College.[2][3]
Walsh formerly served as Lieutenant Governor of Montana. He was elected on a ticket with Bullock, then the Attorney General of Montana, and was sworn in as lieutenant governor on January 7, 2013.[4]
Biography
Walsh was born November 3, 1960, in Butte, Montana. He graduated from Butte High School, received an undergraduate degree from the State University and earned a master's degree in strategic studies from the U.S. Army War College. Walsh has served over 30 years in the Montana National Guard and resigned as Montana's Adjutant General in order to run for lieutenant governor.[5]
Education
Below is an abbreviated outline of Walsh's academic career:[6]
- Butte High School
- B.A., State University of New York
- M.A., Strategic studies, U.S. Army War College
Career
Below is an abbreviated outline of Walsh's political career:[6]
- 2013-2014: Lieutenant Governor of Montana
- 2014-2015: United States Senator, Montana
Committee assignments
U.S. Senate
2013-2014
Walsh served on the following committees:[7]
Issues
Noteworthy events
Misuse of position
A 2010 report found Walsh improperly used his position as adjutant general for personal gain. The report, written by the inspector general of the Army, alleged Walsh tried to get the Montana National Guard to join a private lobbying group, the National Guard Association of the United States. At the time he was running for vice chair-Army of the national association. Prior to endorsing the NGAUS, Walsh asked the Judge Advocate General of the National Guard Bureau if he could legally endorse the association given his position. He interpreted the opinion as allowing an endorsement.[8] The Army formally reprimanded Walsh for "actions were unacceptable, inconsistent with the conduct expected of our senior leaders.”[9][10]
Plagiarism of thesis
In July 2014, reports surfaced alleging that Walsh had plagiarized a significant portion of the 14-page final thesis necessary to earn his master’s degree from the United States Army War College. The thesis, completed in 2007, was on American Middle East policy and was entitled, "The Case for Democracy as a Long Term National Strategy." Many sentences appeared to be copied almost verbatim from other documents, including one from the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and one from Harvard's Belfer Center for Science and International Affairs. Walsh referenced some of these sentences in footnotes, but did not use quotation marks, leading readers to incorrectly assume that the sentences had been reworded. Other sentences were not cited at all, despite having come directly from other writers' work.[11] An interactive graphic of the thesis can be found here.
Walsh defended his actions, stating, "I didn’t do anything intentional here." One of his aides noted that Walsh had been going through a hard time in the weeks leading up to the paper's deadline, as one of the fellow members from his Iraq unit had committed suicide.[11] The college's review board later noted that Walsh had submitted drafts of the paper with plagiarized quotes prior to the suicide.[12]
According to one New York Times article, the college's student handbook states, "discoveries of academic violations have led to degrees being rescinded and names being scraped off the bronze plaques honoring graduates on campus."[11] After an investigation completed in October 2014, the U.S. Army War College revoked Walsh's degree.[12]
PTSD
On July 23, 2014, Walsh admitted his plagiarism, but attributed at least part of it to his unhealthy state of mind in the midst of struggling with post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) after serving in Iraq. Walsh stated, "I don't want to blame my mistake on PTSD, but I do want to say it may have been a factor... My head was not in a place very conducive to a classroom and an academic environment."[13]
Just two days later, on July 25, Walsh contradicted his claim that the plagiarism was linked to his PTSD. He declared in a radio interview, "I am in no way, no way, tying what I did to any type of PTSD."[14]
Decision to drop out of race
After Walsh received heavy criticism from the media regarding his plagiarism scandal, many groups began calling for Walsh to end his U.S. Senate campaign. The editorial board for the Missoulian, a Montana newspaper, wrote, "Since Montanans deserve a true choice between candidates this November, Walsh should bow out of the Senate race immediately. With each passing day that Walsh remains in the race, Montana Democrats lose time to replace him with a more viable candidate."[15] The Billings Gazette, another Montana newspaper, wrote, "Having repeatedly said that he wants to do the honorable thing, Walsh should stop campaigning and do his utmost to serve Montanans well in the remainder of his brief Senate appointment. That is the honorable course."[15]
On August 5, 2014, an article from Politico reported that Walsh was "engaged in internal deliberations with his political team about whether to stay on the ballot this year."[16] At the time, his campaign spokeswoman, Lauren Passalacqua, would say only, “We’re not going to comment on rumors.”[16] In order for the Democratic Party to choose another candidate to take Walsh's place, he needed to drop out of the election by August 11, 2014.[16]
On August 7, 2014, Walsh announced that he would withdraw from the race. He announced, "I am ending my campaign so that I can focus on fulfilling the responsibility entrusted to me as your U.S. senator."[17] The War College also announced that they were making an investigation into Walsh's plagiarism.[17] In October 2014, the college completed the investigation and decided to revoke Walsh's master's degree. The review board stated, "In short, the paper was plagiarized and ... the plagiarism was intentional."[12] In response to the decision, Walsh released a statement in which he wrote, "I apologize to all Montanans for the plagiarism in my 2007 paper, and I am prepared to live with its consequences."[12]
The Democratic Party had until August 20 to choose a new candidate to take Walsh's place. After the Secretary of State, Linda McCulloch, authorized the party to choose a replacement, they held a convention in Helena, MT, where they voted on a new nominee.[3] On August 16, 2014, the Democratic Party chose Amanda Curtis to run against Steve Daines in the November general election.[18]
Elections
2014
Walsh ran in the 2014 election for the U.S. Senate, representing Montana. Walsh won the Democratic nomination in the primary on June 3, 2014.[2] However, he dropped out of the election on August 7, 2014, due to pressure from fellow Democrats after he received harsh criticism for plagiarism of his college thesis.[3]
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 John Walsh Incumbent |
64% | 48,665 | ||
| John Bohlinger | 22.6% | 17,187 | ||
| Dirk Adams | 13.3% | 10,139 | ||
| Total Votes | 75,991 | |||
| Source: Montana Secretary of State - Official Primary Results |
||||
Walsh was appointed by Gov. Steve Bullock on February 7, 2014, to fill the Senate seat of Max Baucus after Baucus was confirmed as the U.S. Ambassador to China on February 6, 2014.
A poll released in November 2013 by Public Policy Polling showed that, regardless of the candidate, Republican Steve Daines was likely to win the seat in 2014. In a match-up against Democrat John Walsh, Daines led 52 percent to 35 percent. In a match-up against Democrat John Bohlinger, Daines led 51 percent to 36 percent.[19]
Campaign officials
In October 2013, the Walsh campaign hired former officials of Sen. Jon Tester's successful 2012 re-election campaign.[20]
Fundraiser for Walsh
Jon Tester and Max Baucus held a fundraiser in November 2013 for Walsh, who was running for Montana's U.S. Senate seat in 2014. Baucus was appointed U.S. Ambassador to China and did not seek re-election. The fundraiser featured Democrat Chuck Schumer from New York. This fundraiser reportedly angered Democrat John Bohlinger, who challenged Walsh in the Democratic senatorial primary. He said, "I am really troubled by the involvement of the Washington insiders in a Montana Democratic senatorial primary race. They should have no business of trying to influence an outcome of an election here." Bohlinger continued to blast D.C. donors saying, "I’ll be raising money, but it will be far lesser amounts than the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (of Washington, D.C.) will pour into Walsh’s campaign fund. Mine will be money that comes from Montanans. I’m really offended by the DSCC and their interest in this (primary)."[21]
Media
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2012
In Montana, the governor and lieutenant governor are elected on a single ticket. Walsh was Montana Attorney General Steve Bullock's running mate in the 2012 election.[22] They defeated Heather Margolis and her running mate Steve Nelsen in the primary election on June 5, 2012.[23]
| Steve Bullock introducing Walsh during the 2012 campaign |
Bullock and Walsh won election in the general election on November 6, 2012.
| Governor/Lieutenant Governor of Montana General Election, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
| Democratic | Steve Bullock and John E. Walsh |
48.9% | 236,450 | |
| Republican | Rick Hill and Jon Sonju | 47.3% | 228,879 | |
| Libertarian | Ron Vandevender and Marc Mulcahy | 3.8% | 18,160 | |
| Total Votes | 483,489 | |||
| Election results via Montana Secretary of State | ||||
| Governor/Lt. Governor of Montana, Democratic Primary, 2012 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes | ||
| Steve Bullock & John E. Walsh |
86.6% | 76,738 | ||
| Heather Margolis & Steve Nelsen | 13.4% | 11,823 | ||
| Total Votes | 88,561 | |||
| Election results via Montana Secretary of State. | ||||
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
Personal Gain Index
- See also: Personal Gain Index (U.S. Congress)
- See also: Personal Gain Index (U.S. Congress)
The Personal Gain Index (U.S. Congress) is a two-part measurement that illustrates the extent to which members of the U.S. Congress have prospered during their tenure as public servants.
It consists of two different metrics:
PGI: Donation Concentration Metric
Filings required by the Federal Election Commission report on the industries that give to each candidate. Using campaign filings and information calculated by OpenSecrets.org, Ballotpedia calculated the percentage of donations by industry received by each incumbent over the course of his or her career (or 1989 and later, if elected prior to 1988). Walsh received the most donations from individuals and PACs employed by the Lawyers/Law Firms industry.
From 2013-2014, 37.85 percent of Walsh's career contributions came from the top five industries as listed below.[24]
| John Walsh (Montana) Campaign Contributions | |
|---|---|
| Total Raised | $2,779,750 |
| Total Spent | $2,066,129 |
| Top five industries that contributed to campaign committee | |
| Lawyers/Law Firms | $347,146 |
| Leadership PACs | $313,000 |
| Retired | $191,300 |
| Lobbyists | $112,100 |
| Real Estate | $88,610 |
| % total in top industry | 12.49% |
| % total in top two industries | 23.75% |
| % total in top five industries | 37.85% |
Personal
Note: Please contact us if the personal information below requires an update.
Walsh and his wife, Janet, live in Helena and have two adult sons.
Recent news
This section links to a Google news search for the term "John + Walsh + Montana + Lieutenant + Governor"
See also
- List of U.S. Congress incumbents who did not run for re-election in 2014
- United States Senate elections, 2014
- Max Baucus
- Montana
- Lieutenant Governor of Montana
- Governor of Montana
- Steve Bullock
External links
- Social media:
- Biographies:
- Political profiles:
- Financial (federal level):
- Financial (state level):
- Interest group ratings:
- Issue positions:
- Legislation:
- Public statements:
- Voting record:
- Media appearances:
- Media coverage:
Footnotes
- ↑ USA Today, "John Walsh tapped to replace Max Baucus in Senate," accessed February 7, 2014
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Politico, "Democrat Walsh files for Senate in Montana," accessed October 9, 2013
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 The Washington Post, "John Walsh just dropped out of Montana’s Senate race. Now what?" accessed August 7, 2014
- ↑ The Billings-Gazette, "Bullock sworn in as 24th governor of Montana," January 7, 2013
- ↑ Steve Bullock.com, "About Gen. Walsh," accessed March 14, 2012
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 Biographical Directory of the United States Congress, "WALSH, John E., (1960 - )," accessed January 9, 2015
- ↑ Congressional Quarterly, "Senate Committee List," accessed January 18, 2013
- ↑ Missoulian.com, "Report: Lt Gov. John Walsh improperly used adjutant general position," accessed December 31, 2013
- ↑ America Rising, "John Walsh Was Reprimanded, Never Promoted Over Ethics Violations," accessed November 10, 2015
- ↑ Washington Times, "Walsh reprimanded by Army after investigation," January 21, 2014
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 11.2 The New York Times, "Montana Democrat’s Thesis Presented Others’ Work as His Own," accessed July 23, 2014
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 12.2 12.3 ABC News, "Army War College Revokes Sen. John Walsh's Degree," accessed October 13, 2014
- ↑ Yahoo! News, "Senator says he had PTSD when he wrote thesis," accessed July 28, 2014
- ↑ The Wall Street Journal, "Sen. John Walsh: PTSD Not to Blame for Plagiarism," accessed July 28, 2014
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 The Huffington Post, "John Walsh Receives Calls From Montana Press To End Senate Campaign," accessed August 6, 2014
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 16.2 Politico, "Sources: Sen. John Walsh weighs political future," accessed August 6, 2014
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 The New York Times, "Montana Senator in Plagiarism Case Ends Election Bid," accessed August 7, 2014
- ↑ Missoulian, "Amanda Curtis wins Montana Democratic nomination to U.S. Senate," accessed August 18, 2014
- ↑ Politico, "Montana Senate race 2014 poll: Steve Daines in driver’s seat," accessed November 21, 2013
- ↑ Politico, "Democrats feel good about Montana 2014," accessed October 24, 2013
- ↑ Missoulian.com, "Bohlinger criticizes Baucus, Tester for early backing of Walsh in U.S. Senate race," accessed November 12, 2013
- ↑ Helena Independent Record, "Bullock makes pick of Walsh as running mate official," March 9, 2012
- ↑ Montana Secretary of State, "Unofficial results: June 5, 2012," accessed June 5, 2012
- ↑ OpenSecrets.org, "Sen. John Walsh," accessed October 7, 2014
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Max Baucus (D) |
United States Senate - Montana 2014-2015 |
Succeeded by Steve Daines (R) |
| Preceded by John Bohlinger (R) |
Lieutenant Governor of Montana 2013 - 2014 |
Succeeded by Angela McLean |
