U.S. charges American commentator with secretly working for China

Federal prosecutors have charged Thomas Pauken II, an American commentator who lived in China for more than a decade, with secretly acting for the Chinese government without registering as a foreign agent. The case rests on an FBI affidavit filed by Special Agent Timothy Healy and alleges that Pauken prepared confidential reports that a Chinese handler said were being conveyed to Xi Jinping.

The accusations cut into the blurred space between journalism, commentary and foreign influence work. Pauken, who has also used the name Tom McGregor, has been described as a political commentator and writer who spent years in Beijing. A July 27, 2025 interview said he was living and working there as a journalist and commentator, which makes the criminal complaint especially notable: the defendant was not a hidden operator in a distant capital, but a public figure moving in media circles while based in China.

Prosecutors say the activity went beyond reporting or opinion writing. One allegation says Pauken told the FBI he was "80 percent sure" an associate now working for the Trump administration would give classified information to China. Another claim says he helped cultivate access to people tied to the Trump administration. Taken together, the allegations suggest a role that federal investigators view as influence-building, not mere commentary.

The legal threshold under the Foreign Agents Registration Act is specific. The law requires certain people acting as agents of foreign principals in the United States to register with the attorney general. The issue is not simply having contact with foreign officials. It is acting on their behalf, under their direction or control, in covered activities without the required filing. The Justice Department also maintains a public system for FARA filings, underscoring how seriously Washington treats undisclosed foreign-linked work.

The case lands as U.S. scrutiny of China’s reach into politics, media and business continues to intensify. Washington has increasingly focused on media-adjacent figures as possible channels for state-backed messaging, especially when their work overlaps with political access, consulting or cross-border relationships. The allegation that reports from Pauken were supposedly headed up to Xi elevates the matter from a narrow registration dispute to a broader national-security concern.

Pauken’s family background adds another political dimension. He is identified as the son of Thomas Pauken, a Texas Republican who chaired the Texas Republican Party and worked in Ronald Reagan’s White House. That Republican lineage, paired with years in Beijing and a public profile as a commentator, gives the case an unusual cross-border profile at a time when U.S.-China tensions remain high over Taiwan, trade and influence operations.