Donald Trump on Tuesday announced the selection of Cantor Fitzgerald CEO Howard Lutnick as Secretary of the US Department of Commerce. Trump has promised to implement a comprehensive tariff policy in his administration, and has chosen Lutnick for this important responsibility.
“Lutnick will lead our tariff and trade policies, with additional responsibilities for the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR),” Trump said in his statement.
Lutnick, who has been co- chairman of Trump’s presidential transition team since August, previously put his name forward for Treasury secretary. Lutnick and hedge fund manager Scott Besant were at odds over Trump’s choice.
Lutnick beat out Robert Lighthizer, who was the U.S. trade representative during Trump’s first term, and Linda McMahon, who was administrator of the Small Business Administration from 2017 to 2019, for the Commerce Secretary post.
Lutnick’s selection came as a surprise to many, as McMahon was considered a leading candidate for the position. However, last week, Lighthizer seemed almost certain to get the pick. At the same time, amid a fight for the Treasury secretary post, Trump decided to give his transition co- chair the Commerce secretary post.
Lutnick and McMahon have led the transition together over the past few months. Lutnick focused on tasks such as vetting and advising cabinet candidates, while McMahon handled policy work. McMahon was disappointed last week that he was not selected for the position, then suddenly learned that Lutnick would be selected for the position.
The role of the US Commerce Secretary is to support domestic businesses, negotiate trade agreements with other countries, and promote foreign investment. Under the Commerce Department are 13 separate agencies, including the Census Bureau, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and the Patent and Trademark Office.
Project 2025, which Trump eschewed during his election campaign, recommended “divisive and downsizing” NOAA, calling the agency part of the “climate change scaremongering industry.”
The Secretary of Commerce works closely with other members of the President’s Cabinet to advise on and implement economic policies. During Trump’s first term, then- Commerce Secretary Wilbur Ross played a key role in the trade war with China and advocated higher tariffs.
“In the early 1900s, when there was no income tax and we only had tariffs, America was the most prosperous,” Lutnick said at Trump’s Madison Square Garden campaign rally last month.
“In the early 1900s, when there was no income tax and we only had tariffs, America was the most prosperous,” Lutnick said at Trump’s Madison Square Garden campaign rally last month.
Lutnick, 63, is a supporter of Trump’s commitment to impose a 60% tariff on imports from China and a 10% tariff on goods from other countries.
After the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, Lutnick started a relief fund for the families of the lost employees of his company. Cater’s headquarters were on the upper floors of the North Tower, and the company lost hundreds of employees that day, including Lutnick’s brother.