United States President-elect Donald Trump on Tuesday chose billionaire Howard Lutnick as Commerce Secretary, a post from which he will lead the implementation of his protectionist policies, focused on imposing high tariffs, including against China. Lutnick is CEO of financial firm Cantor Fitzgerald and was a close aide to Trump during the election campaign, to which he donated millions of dollars.
In a statement, Trump explained that Lutnick would also assume “additional direct responsibility” for the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR), an independent agency that works alongside the Commerce Department to impose tariffs.
Although Trump has not yet announced who will lead USTR, assigning responsibilities to Lutnick suggests a coordinated approach to trade strategy. Since last August, Lutnick has served as co-chair of the transition team, advising the Republican in the selection of his cabinet.
His nomination, however, does not guarantee that he will automatically be able to take office when Trump takes office on January 20, 2025, since the nomination must first be evaluated by a Senate committee and then voted on in plenary session, where it will need a simple majority by 51 votes. Starting in January, Republicans will control both the Senate and the House of Representatives, paving the way for his confirmation without major complications.
Lutnick’s name was suggested to lead the Treasury Department, but Trump decided to evaluate other candidates for the position and chose him to lead his protectionist trade strategy, transition team sources cited by American media like Axios.
The 63-year-old businessman has for years been a staunch defender of Trump’s economic agenda, particularly his tariff proposals, which have sparked concern in some sectors of Wall Street.
At a campaign event last month at New York’s Madison Square Garden, Lutnick noted that the United States reached its greatest prosperity in the early 20th century, when “there were no taxes on income and that everything was financed by customs duties.”
During the campaign, Trump assured that he would save jobs in the country by imposing tariffs of up to 20% on all imported products and 60% on those from China, which would intensify the trade war.
Trump’s main target is the auto industry and he has threatened to impose tariffs of up to 200% on all cars from Mexico to discourage Chinese manufacturers from setting up operations in that country.
Besides his work in business, Lutnick is also known for the role he played following the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001, which deeply affected his business.
Cantor Fitzgerald’s offices were located on the upper floors of the North Tower of the World Trade Center, where hundreds of employees, including Lutnick’s brother, lost their lives.
Since then, she has organized an annual charity event to commemorate the victims of the attacks and raise funds that she donates to charities around the world.
