Thomas Fugate raises an eyebrow in his LinkedIn photo. Credit: LinkedIn / Thomas Fugate

The Trump administration said in a statement to the Express-News that the counterterrorism office the White House recently placed under the leadership of a 22-year-old University of Texas graduate with minimal experience, is an “insignificant” operation.

Last week, the administration grabbed headlines by placing Thomas Fugate III — a former H-E-B employee who ran his own lawn-care service — in charge of the Department of Homeland Security’s Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships, also known as CP3. Fugate’s prior Washington experience, according to online accounts, comes from his time as a Trump campaign worker and an internship at the far-right Heritage Foundation.

Although CP3, under earlier administrations, led efforts to prevent hate crimes, mass shootings and internal security threats, DHS downplayed Fugate’s position in its statement to the Express-News, saying the position isn’t that big of a deal.

“The Department of Homeland Security has a robust counterterrorism program, and the Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships (CP3) office plays an insignificant and ineffective role in the broader efforts,” the statement said.

DHS’s own website describes CP3 as a department that “strengthens our country’s ability to prevent terrorism, and targeted violence, in the Homeland, implementing the core DHS mission.”

The White House statement on Fugate’s position comes after ProPublica last week reported CP3 staffers were shocked at how little their new boss knew about the job. One counterterrorism researcher who previously worked with the office compared the hire to “putting the intern in charge.”

A person who knew Fugate from his time at UTSA told the Current he was puzzled how the political science student ended up in the role.

“Frankly, I thought that he was headed to law school,” said the person, who asked not to be named for fear of blowback. “He didn’t strike me as some sort of national security and counterterrorism expert.”

So, how did Fugate get the job in the first place?

The UTSA grad has been a Trump supporter since at least 2016, according to social media posts cited by the Express-News. After assisting with the 2024 campaign, he worked for the administration as a confidential assistant in DHS’s Immigration and Border Security division.

“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,” the anonymous counterterrorism researcher told ProPublica.

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This article appears in May 29 – Jun 11, 2025.

Michael Karlis is a multimedia journalist at the San Antonio Current, whose coverage in print and on social media focuses on local and state politics. He is a graduate of American University in Washington,...