Lawmakers and Treasury Secretary Pressure Lutnick Over Nvidia Chip Sales to China

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick faces mounting pressure from lawmakers and a fellow Cabinet member over his oversight of Nvidia chip sales to China, following the resignation of Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang amid an affair with a woman linked to a Singapore-based company accused of circumventing U.S. trade bans. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent publicly blamed Lutnick for failing to add Megaspeed International to the Commerce Department's entity list, which restricts trade with risky companies, while Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott requested Lutnick testify on December 10. Congressional Democrats also questioned the vetting of Chinese buyers for Nvidia's H200 AI chips, and Republican Senator Jim Banks accused Lutnick of using loopholes to permit sales against Trump's directives. Lutnick, who took office in February 2025 after a narrow Senate vote, has close personal ties to Huang and Trump, with his former firm Cantor Fitzgerald holding $1.2 billion in Nvidia stock. Despite speculation about his ouster, White House officials stated Trump maintains complete confidence in the secretary.