Morgan Luttrell

Morgan Joe Luttrell (born November 7, 1975) is an American politician, businessman, and military veteran serving as the U.S. representative for Texas's 8th congressional district since 2023. He is a member of the Republican Party.

Early life and education
Born in Houston in 1975, Morgan Joe Luttrell has a twin brother, Marcus. He graduated from Willis High School. Luttrell earned a Bachelor of Science degree in psychology from Sam Houston State University in 2000 and a Master of Science in applied cognition neuroscience from the University of Texas at Dallas in 2016. He also has an executive certificate in professional leadership development from Harvard Business School.

Early career
Luttrell is an adjunct professor at Sam Houston State University, of which he is an alumnus. He also teaches law enforcement leadership.

In 2019, Luttrell founded Trexxler Energy Solutions. He is also the founder of Stronos Industries, which provides recyclable and biodegradable campaign signs.

Military service
Luttrell served as a United States Navy SEAL. He volunteered and received orders for Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL training (BUD/S) at Naval Amphibious Base Coronado in 2001. After months of training, Luttrell graduated from BUD/S class 237. After BUD/S, he completed advanced training courses including parachute training at Basic Airborne School, cold weather combat training in Kodiak, Alaska, and six months of SEAL Qualification Training (SQT) in Coronado, California. Luttrell received the Navy Enlisted Classification (NEC) 5326 as a Combatant Swimmer (SEAL), entitled to wear the Special Warfare Insignia. In 2007, he was commissioned as a Ensign after completing Officer Candidate School and received the 1130 designator as a Naval Special Warfare Officer. He served as a SEAL for 14 years until being medically retired in 2014 for a severe traumatic brain injury and spinal cord injury he sustained in a helicopter crash in 2009. Luttrell travelled to Rosarito, Mexico to obtain psychedelic therapy (ibogaine and 5-MeO-DMT) for his injuries, including "hyperaggression" in civilian life; he described the treatments as having "profound" results, with "it [being] like 20 years of therapy in three days."

Early political involvement
From 2017 to 2019, Luttrell was a senior advisor to Secretary Rick Perry in the United States Department of Energy. At the Energy Department, Luttrell worked to keep U.S. energy industry globally competitive through the Artificial Intelligence and Technologies Office.

2022
In 2021, Luttrell filed to run as a Republican for Texas's 8th congressional district in the 2022 election to succeed retiring incumbent Kevin Brady.

During his campaign, Luttrell was supported by Rick Perry, Congressman Dan Crenshaw (also a former Navy SEAL), House Minority Leader Kevin McCarthy, Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, the Congressional Leadership Fund, and the American Patriots PAC, which was founded by McCarthy allies. He garnered some notoriety from his brother Marcus, a veteran and the author of the memoir Lone Survivor. In total, there were 11 candidates in the Republican primary, but Luttrell and Christian Collins, a conservative activist, were identified as the primary contenders since they both received significant political endorsements. Collins was supported by U.S. Senator Ted Cruz, the House Freedom action fund, and avid Trump supporters such as Marjorie Taylor Greene and Madison Cawthorn. The Texas Tribune described the race as "a tense proxy war, with some of the best-known Republicans in Texas—and the country—split between two of the leading candidates." Luttrell has expressed support for Trump, but he did request and receive campaign funds from a political PAC run by Adam Kinzinger, a major critic of Trump. Luttrell and Collins ran on similar issues—securing the border, gun rights, and restricting abortion —but Collins attempted to portray himself as the more pro-Trump candidate, accusing Luttrell of "lining up with the establishment". Donald Trump did not make an endorsement in the race.

Luttrell won the Republican primary with 52.2% of the vote, avoiding a runoff with Collins, who placed second with 22%. The Democratic nominee in the general election was Laura Jones, the former Democratic Party chair of San Jacinto County. Luttrell joined a lawsuit with several other congressional Republican candidates to remove Libertarian Party candidates, who are often perceived as threatening to Republican chances in tight elections, from the ballot. FiveThirtyEight rated Luttrell "very likely" to win the election. He was endorsed by the editorial board of the Houston Chronicle. On November 8, 2022, Luttrell defeated Jones in the general election by 68% to 31%.

2024
Luttrell was uncontested in the 2024 Republican primary, and he will again face Democratic nominee Laura Jones in the general election.

Tenure
Luttrell assumed office on January 3, 2023 and was officially sworn in following the election of Kevin McCarthy as Speaker of the House on January 7. Along with Joaquin Castro and Troy Nehls, Luttrell is one of three twins from Texas in the 118th United States Congress. Luttrell was assigned to the House Armed Services Committee, serving on the Subcommittee on Cyber, Innovative Technologies and Information Systems and the Subcommittee on Intelligence and Special Operations.

Luttrell was among the 71 Republicans who voted against final passage of the Fiscal Responsibility Act of 2023 in the House. He introduced an amendment, that was passed by the House, to a Department of Defense appropriations bill allocating $15 million to conduct clinical trials regarding the use of psychedelic therapy for veterans with traumatic brain injuries. In December 2023, Luttrell joined 13 of his colleagues in requesting an investigation into an attorney at the Office of General Counsel for the U.S. Department of Veteran Affairs over their alleged antisemitic comments.

Caucus memberships

 * Republican Main Street Partnership

Personal life
Luttrell and his wife Leslie have two sons. They live in Magnolia, Texas. Pew Research identified Luttrell as a Protestant, and he has described himself as a "practicing Christian."