James T. Walsh

James Thomas Walsh (born June 19, 1947) is an American Republican politician from Syracuse, New York. Walsh served in the United States House of Representatives from 1989 until his retirement from the House in 2009. Walsh represented a portion of Central New York. After his congressional tenure, Walsh became a government affairs counselor for K & L Gates in Washington, DC.

Known as a moderate, pro-labor Republican, Walsh was a member of the United States House Committee on Appropriations for 16 years. He also chaired the United States House Appropriations Subcommittee on Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies. Walsh was also active in the peace process in Northern Ireland, for which the Walsh Visa was created and named in his honor. As co-founder and co-chair of the Congressional Hearing Health Caucus, Walsh secured passage of laws aimed at guaranteeing universal hearing screenings for newborns and infants in the United States. In 2009, the James T. Walsh Universal Newborn Hearing Screening Program was enacted. Walsh's change of perspective regarding both of then-President George W. Bush's troop surge of 2007 and ideology regarding the Iraq War caused Walsh's views to gain headlines in the news media; he called for a gradual withdrawal of American troops from Iraq.

During the 1970s and 1980s, Walsh was a member of the Syracuse City Council. He served as its leader for five years. In 1999, he issued a challenge with several goals that is known as The Syracuse Neighborhood Initiative (SNI).

Walsh's father, William F. Walsh, served as Mayor of Syracuse during the 1960s and was a Republican Member of the United States House of Representatives in the 1970s. Walsh's son, Ben Walsh, began serving as Mayor of Syracuse in 2018.