James Butler Brennan (February 1, 1926 – June 6, 2021) was an American attorney and Democratic politician from the U.S. state of Wisconsin. He was United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin during the presidencies of John F. Kennedy and Lyndon B. Johnson and later served twelve years as Milwaukee's city attorney. Earlier in his career, he served two and a half years in the Wisconsin State Senate.

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James B. Brennan
City Attorney of Milwaukee, Wisconsin
In office April 1972 – April 1984
Preceded by	John J. Fleming
Succeeded by	Grant Langley
United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin
In office May 8, 1961 – 1969
President	John F. Kennedy Lyndon B. Johnson
Preceded by	Edward G. Minor
Succeeded by	David J. Cannon
Member of the Wisconsin Senate from the 5th district
In office January 5, 1959 – April 29, 1961
Preceded by	Walter L. Merten
Succeeded by	Charles J. Schmidt
Personal details
Born	James Butler Brennan (1926-02-01)February 1, 1926 Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Died	June 6, 2021(2021-06-06) (aged 95)
Resting place	Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Joan Landgraf Brennan
Children	William Brennan, Mary Jo Brennan, Nancy Brennan, Marty Brennan
Alma mater	University of Notre Dame (A.B.) Marquette Law School (LL.B.)
Profession	attorney
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Navy
Years of service	1944–1946
Battles/wars	World War II

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Born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Brennan graduated from Milwaukee's Marquette University High School and joined the United States Navy at age 18, for service in World War II. He received his bachelor's degree from the University of Notre Dame and his LL.B. from Marquette University Law School. He practiced law in Milwaukee for several years before running for office. He was a delegate to the 1960 Democratic National Convention, supporting the presidential nomination of then-Senator John F. Kennedy.^[1]

Brennan was elected to the Wisconsin State Senate in 1958, representing part of the city of Milwaukee. He served two years but resigned in April 1961 in anticipation of his confirmation as United States Attorney.^[2]

In March 1961, newly elected president John F. Kennedy nominated Brennan to serve as United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Wisconsin.^[3]: 477 His nomination was reported favorably out of the Senate Judiciary Committee on May 4, 1961,^[3]: 589 and he was confirmed on May 8.^[2] Brennan ultimately served through the Kennedy administration, and continued to serve through the presidency of Lyndon B. Johnson. He remained in office until his successor was appointed by President Nixon in 1969.

In 1972, Brennan was elected City Attorney for Milwaukee, serving three four-year terms.^[4] He was defeated in the 1984 election by his subordinate, Grant Langley, despite strong backing from the then-Mayor Henry Maier.^[5] After his defeat, he worked briefly as a staff attorney for the Milwaukee Metropolitan Sewerage District before resigning from that role in 1988.^[6]

Brennan died on June 6, 2021. He is survived by his four children, six grandchildren, and seven great-grandchildren.^[7]