Paul Wiseman
WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate confirmed wealthy financial operator Howard Lutnick as secretary of commerce on Tuesday, introducing solid supporters of President Donald Trump’s tough trade policy.
In the commerce division, Lutnick, CEO of investment firm Cantor Fitzgerald, oversees 50,000 employees who do everything from collecting economic statistics to running the census. But he could spend a lot of time — along with Trump’s candidate Jamieson Greer, he would become the top US trade negotiator — imposing import taxes on US trading partners, including allies and enemies. He manages the president’s aggressive plan.
The Senate vote to confirm Lutnick was 51-45.
Trump sees tariffs as a versatile economic tool. They raised funds to fund his tax cuts elsewhere, protecting the US industry and pressured other countries to make concessions on issues such as their own trade barriers, immigration, drug trafficking and more. You can apply it. Mainstream economists primarily view tariffs as counterproductive. They are paid by US importers, and they try to pass higher costs to consumers, thereby increasing inflationary pressures across the economy.
At a confirmation hearing last month, Lutnick dismissed the idea that tariffs contribute to inflation as “nonsense.” He expressed his support for the deployment of full tariffs “country by country” to strongly arm other countries to lower barriers to American exports.
Trump announced plans for “mutual” tariffs last week. The move will shatter rules that have been dominating global trade for decades, increasing the US import tax rate to coincide with the higher taxes other countries place on goods from the US. Since the 1960s, tariff rates have mostly emerged from negotiations between dozens of countries. Trump is leading the process.
The president also imposed a 10% tariff on Chinese imports, effectively increasing US taxes on foreign steel and aluminum. He was threatened and was delayed until March 4th. 25% tariff on goods from Canada and Mexico.
Lutnick was CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald when the office was hit by the World Trade Center attack on September 11, 2001. The company lost two-thirds of its employees (658), including Lutnick’s siblings that day. Howard Lutnick led the company’s recovery and is a member of the National Memorial Museum’s board of directors on September 11th.
Lutnick has pledged to sell his Business Holdings. They are complicated. His financial disclosure statement showed he has positions in more than 800 companies and other private organizations.
Original issue: February 18, 2025, 6:50pm EST
