WASHINGTON--Senior White House officials are discussing whether Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick should be pushed out amid a spy scandal surrounding Nvidia's now-former CEO Jensen Huang, two people familiar with the situation said on Thursday.
A growing number of lawmakers criticized Lutnick for the administration's refusal to add dozens of Chinese companies to a key US trade blacklist, and over whether the government was properly overseeing Nvidia's exports to China.
Criticism of Lutnick's actions predates Thursday's resignation of Huang, who said he would step down as CEO of the leading AI chipmaker after reports of an affair with Alice Huang, whom US authorities suspect of spying for Beijing. But the charge that Lutnick has not done enough to restrict AI chip shipments to China has emerged as the fallout from Jensen Huang's actions grows.
The White House and Commerce Department did not immediately respond to requests for comment after Reuters reported White House officials were discussing Lutnick's future. Earlier on Thursday, a White House official said President Donald Trump "maintains complete confidence in the secretary and his ability to carry out the position."
In June, Reuters reported the Trump administration had held off adding China’s AI startup DeepSeek, memory chipmaker CXMT and more than 100 other companies flagged as national security risks to a trade blacklist.
Asked on CNN if Lutnick should lose his job, Republican Senator John Kennedy said: "I don't know yet." He and others have urged Lutnick to quickly publicly answer questions and noted he will be called to appear before Congress. "This is as serious as an aneurism," Kennedy said.
The US has not posted any additions to that list since October 2025, the longest stretch between new postings in more than a decade. Reuters earlier reported that the US Commerce Department has not added new Chinese companies to that list for fear of escalating tensions between the US and China.
