Trump Picks Lutnick For Commerce Secretary
Update (1423ET): The Trump transition team has officially announced Lutnick as the pick.
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In the latest unconfirmed report from "people familiar with the matter," President-elect Donald Trump is expected to nominate veteran Wall Street financier Howard Lutnick to head up the Commerce Department - days after the Cantor Fitzgerald CEO was reportedly passed over to lead the Treasury Department.
Lutnick, who has the backing of several prominent allies including Elon Musk, has been a fierce advocate of Trump's economic proposals - including a pledge to impose sweeping tariffs.
If confirmed, Lutnick would oversee the agency focused on 'expanding US economic growth and boosting domestic industries,' the Wall Street Journal reports.
The Commerce Secretary supports US businesses - often acting as an emissary between nations to negotiate trade deals and increase foreign investment. There are 13 bureaus within the department, including the US Patent and Trademark Office. The Commerce secretary works with other members of the president's Cabinet who are similarly tasked with carrying out and advising on aspects of economic policy.
Lutnick reportedly edged out Robert Lighthizer - Trump's US trade representative during his first term, and Linda McMahon, who administered the SBA from 2017 to 2019. According to CNN (so extra grains of salt), both were recently informed that Lutnick was getting the Commerce job.
Lutnick and McMahon have co-chaired Trump's transition over the past several months - with Lutnick vetting people and advising Trump on Cabinet nominees, and McMahon running policy.
Last month, Lutnick said at a Madison Square Garden Trump rally that the US was the most prosperous during the early 1900s, when there was "no income tax and all we had was tariffs."
"We had so much money that we had the greatest businessmen of America get together to try to figure out how to spend it," said Lutnick, an advocate for higher tariffs.
Trump, meanwhile, has pledged to impose 60% tariffs on goods from China, and 10% tariffs on goods from other countries.
The reported nomination of Lutnick for commerce secretary suggests - as we detailed earlier - that the 'safe' pick of Warsh for Treasury Secretary and Bessent as NEC Director is in play.
