An American journalist and author has been charged with acting as an unregistered agent for the Chinese government, federal prosecutors announced. Thomas Weir Pauken II, the son of former Texas Workforce Commission Chair Thomas Pauken, was arrested in early March and is scheduled for a preindictment plea hearing Friday in the Eastern District of Virginia.
Court documents, first obtained by Politico, allege that Pauken worked under the direction of individuals tied to China's Ministry of State Security (MSS), the country's civilian intelligence service. FBI Special Agent Timothy Healy wrote in an affidavit that Pauken admitted during a voluntary interview that his activities with a handler known only as "Cathy" and other PRC-linked individuals were part of a conspiracy to obtain classified U.S. government information.
According to the affidavit, Pauken's tasks included meeting potential human sources, providing them with cellphones and laptops, and sharing reports between the U.S. and China. The investigation began in December 2025 when Customs and Border Protection (CBP) agents at Washington Dulles International Airport found two cellphones, a laptop, and $3,000 in cash in his luggage. Pauken told agents he was only in town for a few minutes and planned to return to China in three days. One of the people he was scheduled to meet was seeking a job in the Trump administration. Pauken believed that if this individual—identified as Person 1—was hired, there was an 80 percent chance they would provide classified information to China.
Pauken moved to China in 2010, working as a journalist in Hong Kong and for state-owned media outlets before becoming an editor for Xinhua news in 2024. He used the pseudonym "Tom McGregor" at his father's request. The affidavit notes that his associates were "obsessed with attaining information" about his father, a former Reagan administration official. Around 2017, Pauken met a speechwriter for Chinese President Xi Jinping and was introduced to "Cathy," who expressed early interest in obtaining classified information from him.
Between 2019 and 2025, Pauken made several all-expenses-paid trips to the U.S. and received approximately $100,000 for reports that were later shared with Xi. After being confronted last year, CBP agents instructed him to continue his activities as if nothing had changed, as the FBI sought to use him as a double agent. The FBI warned him not to obtain or transfer classified information but told him to proceed with his plans.
In February, Pauken returned to the U.S. and met with the individual he had previously provided with a laptop and cellphone at a Washington, D.C., hotel. The FBI monitored the meeting. During the encounter, Pauken offered the individual $100,000 in cash and a SIM card to communicate with "Cathy," stating that his handler expected one report per week on topics that would "influence policy and be read by Xi Jinping."
Pauken is the author of "US vs China: From Trade War to Reciprocal Deal," a 2019 book that claims to offer an insider account of trade negotiations between the two superpowers. The case highlights ongoing concerns about Chinese espionage and influence operations targeting U.S. government and political circles. This development comes amid broader tensions, as seen in the contradictions over Taiwan arms sales and the new DOJ anti-weaponization fund.
