Jim Swanson is a former military lawyer and a retired USAF brigadier general. 

He grew up in Mundelein, Illinois, north of Chicago, and entered the Air Force following his graduation from Purdue University with a BA degree in journalism.  He was later selected by the Air Force to attend law school,  earning a Juris Doctorate from the University of Illinois. 

He spent most of his Air Force career as a judge advocate, serving in a variety of legal and military management positions around the world, including several deployments to the Middle East.  He retired after 32 years active-duty service.

After his retirement from the military, he served in a number of executive and management positions, including as a member of the senior executive service (SES) with the Department of Homeland Security, general counsel and corporate secretary to the Military Officers Association of America, Senior Director heading the American Bar Association’s large Washington, DC office, and as CEO of a charitable non-profit in Naples, FL.