Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick faces mounting bipartisan pressure over his agency’s oversight of Nvidia chip exports to China following the resignation of the tech giant’s CEO.
Export Loophole Scrutiny
Federal lawmakers have launched inquiries into how the Commerce Department handled shipments of advanced processors to overseas entities. Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Chris Coons sent a joint letter requesting the administration preserve records of exports to China. The lawmakers questioned why officials continued approving licenses for H200 chips despite intelligence warnings.
Warren urged the administration to “explain why they have not closed export control loopholes,” demanding action to stop technology from reaching foreign militaries.
He sold out our national security to keep the stock market high. https://t.co/pt3s7lJT31
Following disclosures that the company’s chief executive had ties to an alleged Chinese spy, a pair of Democratic senators are urging the Trump administration to retain all documentation concerning Nvidia.
Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts and Chris Coons of Delaware officially requested that the Trump administration save every record tied to interactions with Nvidia, as congressional Democrats ready themselves to assume control on Capitol Hill by 2027 and pledge to investigate the circumstances surrounding CEO Jensen Huang’s exit.
Details from inside the room w/@MarcACaputo: At a White House Situation Room meeting on Thursday after the midterm elections, Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent pressed Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick on why Megaspeed had not been added to the Commerce Department's entity list.…
Comprising this Republican-led collective are heads from the House Select Committee on the Chinese Communist Party, the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, and the House Intelligence Committee.
Ted Lieu, D-Calif., projected to step into the role of House Democratic Caucus chairman, shared with Fox News Digital that Howard Lutnick took on his role as Commerce Secretary in 2025 following his tenure as co-chair of Trump’s transition committee.
Ro Khanna, D-Calif., serving as both a vice chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and a member of the House Select Committee on China, also voiced backing for a probe into Lutnick while refusing to rule out looking into Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s participation as well, noting that openness is essential to comprehending what authorities were aware of.
Louisiana Republican Sen. John Kennedy and other lawmakers joined in questioning the authorization of advanced American semiconductor exports to China.
This article is the best encapsulation of Congressional republicans turning on Lutnickhttps://t.co/UpDLZ8Pytj
In a late Wednesday development, information emerged that the Commerce Department was putting the finishing touches on a directive to broaden export restrictions to seven nations in Southeast Asia—namely Malaysia, Singapore, and Thailand—with the objective of plugging a vulnerability that permitted Chinese actors to remotely tap into Nvidia processors housed within data hubs in those territories.
Howard Lutnick, who runs the Commerce Department, characterized the Commerce agency’s handling of the Megaspeed situation as remarkable.
NEW: The world is wondering why the Trump administration has not taken action against the company at the center of suspected Nvidia chip smuggling and an espionage scandal involving CEO Jensen Huang. Six high-level sources all pointed to one administration official who they say…
Situation Room Clashes
Internal administration tensions flared over trade enforcement. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent confronted Lutnick during a Situation Room meeting regarding Singapore-based Megaspeed. The firm allegedly diverted $4 billion worth of advanced hardware to restricted buyers.
“The real scandal here is the lack of enforcement of export controls,” Chris McGuire, an expert on China and emerging technologies at the Council on Foreign Relations, said.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio supported tougher export curbs during the clash.
A Commerce Department spokesperson said that Treasury and Commerce have a great working relationship and that both are committed to advancing President Trump’s agenda. Meanwhile, neither the White House nor the Commerce Department answered requests for comment on the new claims surrounding Lutnick’s position.
Expressing full support, a presidential spokesperson said that President Trump retains total trust in the secretary and his capacity to execute the duties of the position as the most transformative Commerce secretary in modern history.
Congressional Investigations
Jensen Huang stepped down as chief executive following revelations regarding an extramarital relationship with Alice Huang, an executive at Megaspeed. U.S. intelligence officials identified her as a suspected foreign intelligence operative.
Sen. Ron Wyden and Rep. Richard Neal accused the administration of implementing an unconstitutional export tax system. The lawmakers said that the White House permitted chip sales in exchange for a revenue share and tariff collection.
President Trump was briefed on intelligence about a year ago suggesting that Alice Huang was a Chinese asset and that she had grown close to Jensen Huang. Critics argued that officials did nothing despite the intelligence warnings, with outside observers questioning whether Lutnick lacked understanding of his responsibilities or was protecting the executive.
Brian Mast contended that Congress must take a hard look at the mechanisms the Commerce Department uses to sign off on chip transactions, though he added that his faith in Lutnick remains unshaken. Timing-wise, the Nvidia update arrived precisely as Democrats are putting the finishing touches on their oversight strategies for the upcoming congressional term.
“Can we be confident that he is looking out for the public interest?” asked Kathleen Clark, a law professor and expert on government ethics at Washington University in St. Louis.
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