James Thomas currently serves as Vice President and Head of Government Affairs at Comtech. Previously, he was Director, National Security for Leidos Government Affairs. Currently, James is responsible for all Congressional priorities and engagements for Comtech on Capitol Hill. With over 17 years of congressional experience on the Hill, in the Executive Branch in two Presidential Administrations, and in the private sector, James brings a vast array of government and nongovernmental experience to the Comtech team.

Prior to joining Leidos in May of 2020, James was the Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Senate Affairs. In this role, he was the senior advisorto the Secretary of Defense and Deputy Secretary of Defense, responsible for advocating the Department's policies, strategies, and annual budget to the United States Congress, and served as a principal representative and spokesperson on legislative and resourcing priorities to Members of Congress, congressional staff, and interagency officials. Additionally, James led the Senate confirmation process for 58 senior Department leadership positions, supporting the preparation and staffing of Presidential nominees for Senate committee hearings, to include the Secretary and Deputy Secretary of Defense.

Before working in the Office of the Secretary of Defense, James was the Senior Advisor to the Secretary and Under Secretary of the Air Force. He routinely provided critical counsel to the Secretary of the Air Force and Under Secretary of the Air Force on major policy, and budgetary issues impacting the Department. Preceding his time at the Department of Defense, James was Assistant Vice President for Policy at the National Defense Industrial Association where he was the chief representative for the Association to Members of Congress and their staff on policy matters impacting the defense industry. In this capacity, James testified before the House Armed Services Committee, Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations at an open hearing titled, "Evaluating the Defense Contract Audit Process."

After leaving the Administration of President George Bush in 2009, James worked on Capitol Hill, as the Legislative Director to former Congressman Duncan D. Hunter from San Diego, California. He directed and managed the Congressman's Legislative staff on all policy areas, in addition to managing the Congressman's primary issues of National Security, Foreign Affairs, and Veterans Affairs. James developed and executed the legislative agenda for the Congressman as well as provided key advice and recommendations on matters relating to contingency operations in Iraq and Afghanistan, intelligence gathering and dissemination, industrial base policy, and military readiness.

James was an enlisted Marine Infantry combat veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF I and OIF IV), serving from 2002 -2010.