From H-E-B to the White House: Who is Thomas Fugate, Trump's new staffer?
By Kelsey Thompson,
Austin Digital Reporter
June 5, 2025
Just one year after graduating from the University of Texas at San Antonio, a 22-year-old politics student has been tapped to lead counter-terrorism efforts in the United States.
ProPublica reported on Wednesday, June 4, that Thomas Fugate has been named a leading official within the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and has been tasked with overseeing national terrorism prevention plans, including work with the Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships, or CP3. That office has concentrated its work surrounding mitigating hate-fueled attacks, school shootings and other forms of coordinated violence, ProPublica detailed.
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His background includes an internship with The Heritage Foundation's Young Leader's Program, time as a Texas Civic Ambassador cohort member at the University of Texas at Austin's Annette Strauss Institute, as well as working as a contract employee for President Donald Trump's 2024 re-election campaign, according to Fugate's LinkedIn.
The 22-year-old was working part-time at an Austin H-E-B just two years ago, his LinkedIn noted. Prior to that, Fugate interned with the U.S. House of Representatives and The Borgen Project, as well as worked as a self-employed landscaper.
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"Maybe he’s a wunderkind. Maybe he’s Doogie Howser and has everything at 21 years old, or whatever he is, to lead the office. But that’s not likely the case," one counterterrorism researcher who has worked with CP3 officials for years told ProPublica. "It sounds like putting the intern in charge."
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I can’t even…
Doogie Howser 🤣