Trump Plans to Nominate Lutnick as Commerce Secretary
The billionaire megadonor is currently acting as co-chair for Trump's transition.
TroibNews 
President-elect Donald Trump has selected Howard Lutnick, the longtime friend and CEO of financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald, as his nominee for Commerce Secretary, as reported by three sources familiar with the decision.
Lutnick is a prominent figure on Wall Street who has played a significant role in Trump's transition efforts over recent months, particularly in vetting candidates for key administration positions with a focus on loyalty and business acumen. He has also been a major financial supporter of Trump's campaign, contributing and raising tens of millions of dollars.
At 63, Lutnick was initially considered for the Treasury secretary position but reportedly fell out of favor with Trump due to infighting between him and other contenders, notably financier Scott Bessent.
The formal announcement of Lutnick's nomination is not expected today.
He gained recognition for his leadership in rebuilding Cantor Fitzgerald following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, which resulted in the loss of 658 employees, including his brother.
If the Senate confirms Lutnick, he will oversee various agencies focused on job promotion and economic growth, including the Census Bureau, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, among others.
The Commerce Department also contains two crucial trade agencies: the International Trade Administration, responsible for setting duties on goods deemed unfairly priced or subsidized; and the Bureau of Industry and Security, which imposes export controls to protect sensitive U.S. technologies from adversarial nations. BIS is also involved in national security investigations that may lead to new tariffs, such as those imposed by Trump on steel and aluminum during his first term in 2018.
Lutnick has expressed intentions to reduce regulations, implement Trump’s extensive tariffs, enhance energy production, extend 2017 tax cuts, and lower the corporate tax rate. Additionally, he is a strong advocate for the cryptocurrency sector and would be positioned to fulfill Trump’s commitment to establishing the U.S. as the “crypto capital of the planet.”
Despite concerns from many of his Wall Street peers, Lutnick has defended Trump’s plan for broad tariffs, describing them as “a bargaining chip” in trade discussions. He mentioned on CNBC in September, “We should put tariffs on stuff we make and not put tariffs on stuff we don’t make.”
Having joined Cantor Fitzgerald in 1983 and serving as its CEO since 1991, Lutnick has been a longtime associate of Trump, even appearing on “Celebrity Apprentice” at one point.
Although he was a registered Democrat for years, Lutnick contributed to both Republican and Democratic campaigns during the 2016 election. He financially supported Trump’s 2020 campaign and emerged as a megadonor with considerable influence in Trump’s strategy to reclaim the presidency in the recent election.
Lutnick remarked at one of Trump's rallies, “Donald Trump is going to build the greatest team to ever walk into government, and we are going to balance our budget.”
He has mentioned that the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 motivated him to increase his efforts in supporting Trump’s election. He stated to The Philadelphia Inquirer, “Trump had clear, moral clarity when it came to Israel and what happened, and the way that he thought about what happened. That was huge to me.”
Ari Hawkins and Doug Palmer contributed to this report.
Olivia Brown for TROIB News
Lutnick is a prominent figure on Wall Street who has played a significant role in Trump's transition efforts over recent months, particularly in vetting candidates for key administration positions with a focus on loyalty and business acumen. He has also been a major financial supporter of Trump's campaign, contributing and raising tens of millions of dollars.
At 63, Lutnick was initially considered for the Treasury secretary position but reportedly fell out of favor with Trump due to infighting between him and other contenders, notably financier Scott Bessent.
The formal announcement of Lutnick's nomination is not expected today.
He gained recognition for his leadership in rebuilding Cantor Fitzgerald following the terrorist attacks on September 11, 2001, which resulted in the loss of 658 employees, including his brother.
If the Senate confirms Lutnick, he will oversee various agencies focused on job promotion and economic growth, including the Census Bureau, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, among others.
The Commerce Department also contains two crucial trade agencies: the International Trade Administration, responsible for setting duties on goods deemed unfairly priced or subsidized; and the Bureau of Industry and Security, which imposes export controls to protect sensitive U.S. technologies from adversarial nations. BIS is also involved in national security investigations that may lead to new tariffs, such as those imposed by Trump on steel and aluminum during his first term in 2018.
Lutnick has expressed intentions to reduce regulations, implement Trump’s extensive tariffs, enhance energy production, extend 2017 tax cuts, and lower the corporate tax rate. Additionally, he is a strong advocate for the cryptocurrency sector and would be positioned to fulfill Trump’s commitment to establishing the U.S. as the “crypto capital of the planet.”
Despite concerns from many of his Wall Street peers, Lutnick has defended Trump’s plan for broad tariffs, describing them as “a bargaining chip” in trade discussions. He mentioned on CNBC in September, “We should put tariffs on stuff we make and not put tariffs on stuff we don’t make.”
Having joined Cantor Fitzgerald in 1983 and serving as its CEO since 1991, Lutnick has been a longtime associate of Trump, even appearing on “Celebrity Apprentice” at one point.
Although he was a registered Democrat for years, Lutnick contributed to both Republican and Democratic campaigns during the 2016 election. He financially supported Trump’s 2020 campaign and emerged as a megadonor with considerable influence in Trump’s strategy to reclaim the presidency in the recent election.
Lutnick remarked at one of Trump's rallies, “Donald Trump is going to build the greatest team to ever walk into government, and we are going to balance our budget.”
He has mentioned that the Hamas attack on Israel on October 7 motivated him to increase his efforts in supporting Trump’s election. He stated to The Philadelphia Inquirer, “Trump had clear, moral clarity when it came to Israel and what happened, and the way that he thought about what happened. That was huge to me.”
Ari Hawkins and Doug Palmer contributed to this report.
Olivia Brown for TROIB News
