College Grad Now Heads Trump Admin's Terrorism Prevention Team Despite Lack of National Security Experience

A 22-year-old recent college graduate with seemingly no national security experience is leading the Trump administration's domestic terrorism prevention efforts.

Thomas Fugate graduated from the University of Texas at San Antonio with a degree in political science just last year. In January, the former Trump campaign staffer and Heritage Foundation intern, the organization behind Project 2025, was appointed by President Donald Trump to a position within the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), a ProPublica report revealed.

Fugate now serves as director of the Center for Prevention Programs and Partnerships (CP3), which focuses on terrorism prevention. He also oversees an $18 million grant program aimed at combating violent extremism in communities.

People familiar with CP3 told ProPublica that a candidate with as little experience as Fugate, whose leadership experience seemingly stemmed from serving as secretary general of a Model United Nations club, would typically never be hired for the role.

"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," a counterterrorism researcher who has worked with CP3 officials told the outlet.

Fugate took over the role after Director Bill Braniff, an Army veteran with more than 20 years of national security experience, resigned in March after DOGE began firing his staff, which went from 80 to less than 20 officials. It appears, per the report, that the Trump administration is aiming to eliminate CP3's $18 million grant program because it "does not align with DHS priorities."

A former Homeland Security official warned that the decision "means that the department founded to prevent terrorism in the United States no longer prioritizes preventing terrorism in the United States," despite a recent wave of attacks, including an April mass shooting at Florida State University and the assassination of Minnesota Democratic lawmaker Melissa Hortman and her husband, Mark, just last week.