Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick is quickly losing friends on Capitol Hill after coming under fire for his actions with American computer chip giant Nvidia.
Lutnick could become the next high-ranking administration member to get the boot as part of President Donald Trump’s post-midterm personnel shuffle over accusations the Cabinet official jeopardized national security with his purported knowledge of former Nvidia President and CEO Jensen Huang’s affair with an alleged Chinese spy.
Republicans want Lutnick in the witness chair to testify, by subpoena if necessary. And they’re warning that his job could be on the line if he fails to make his case to anxious lawmakers why he approved the sale of Nvidia’s chips to Chinese buyers if he knew of the alleged affair. There are also questions over why he resisted Trump’s attempts to crack down on the transshipment of advanced chips not approved for sale to Chinese AI companies.
“If I were the secretary, I would have already called a press conference … and I would have started answering the hard questions. And there are a bunch of hard questions,” Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) said. “Congress is not going to let this go.”
Sen. Kevin Cramer (R-ND), another close Trump ally, declined to say he maintains confidence in Lutnick to carry out his job.
“If in fact he has been throttling or accelerating sales of the chips to our adversaries, particularly in light of the fact that the president said not to, that would be a problem,” Cramer said. “The rumors are very concerning.”
Nvidia’s chips have been instrumental to the rapid AI infrastructure buildout in the United States, but Congress fears Washington’s ability to outpace Beijing could now be at risk.
A White House official told the Washington Examiner Thursday that Trump “maintains complete confidence in the secretary and his ability to carry out the position as the most transformative Commerce secretary in modern history.”
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<p> ” data-large-file=”https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/the-gop-knives-are-out-for-trump-commerce-secretary-howard-lutnick.webp” src=”https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/the-gop-knives-are-out-for-trump-commerce-secretary-howard-lutnick.webp” alt=”Jensen and Lutnick.” class=”wp-image-4802298″ srcset=”https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/the-gop-knives-are-out-for-trump-commerce-secretary-howard-lutnick.webp 1024w, https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/the-gop-knives-are-out-for-trump-commerce-secretary-howard-lutnick.webp?resize=300,200 300w, https://conservativemodern.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/11/the-gop-knives-are-out-for-trump-commerce-secretary-howard-lutnick.webp?resize=768,512 768w” sizes=”(max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px”><figcaption class=)
NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang and Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick talk as President Donald Trump speaks in the Oval Office of the White House about Dulles International Airport modernization, Wednesday, July 29, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)“Secretary Lutnick is a champion of President Trump’s America First trade and tariff policies, which have secured almost 20 fair trade deals and trillions in manufacturing investments,” the official added.
Huang resigned Thursday amid the fallout over two separate affairs, one with an alleged Chinese spy. It dampened the concerns swirling in Congress. But committees of jurisdiction are still seeking classified briefings on potential national security implications, and lawmakers warn the matter is far from over for Lutnick.
LUTNICK EMERGES AS FAVORED NEXT-TO-GO IN TRUMP’S POST-MIDTERM PERSONNEL SHUFFLE
Retiring Sen. Thom Tillis (R-NC), who’s long opposed Lutnick in his role over the administration’s tariffs and firing lower-level officials, said the secretary’s “fingerprints are all over bad advice to the president.”
“If he was aware of these potential compromises and didn’t bring it to the attention of the president, the Intelligence Committee, and Senate Armed Services or others, then he doesn’t know how government works, and he should be held accountable for that,” Tillis said. “He would do himself a favor by getting in a room with Republicans, whether it’s a committee hearing or not, and lay out the facts.”
