There have been multiple concerning reports over the last 36 hours related to Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick’s actions related to Jensen Huang, Nvidia, Megaspeed, and enforcement and monitoring of export controls on Nvidia’s advanced AI chips.
Axios reports that Lutnick has “repeatedly stood in the way” of implementing additional export controls to crack down on companies — not just Megaspeed — suspected of diverting Nvidia chips to China. According to that report, based on conversations with six separate sources, some of whom were in the room to hear discussions, “on at least three separate occasions — in May, August, and Nov. 5 — Trump approved taking action,” but Lutnick stalled.
Back in May, they report, “a highly classified memo,” presumably the memo drafted by Secretary of State Marco Rubio, about Jensen Huang’s relationship with suspected Chinese spy Alice Huang was shared with the president and other officials. RedState can confirm that the memo was shared with administration officials, including some of President Trump’s advisors, but we have been unable to confirm that the information was communicated to Trump himself.
In a meeting held shortly after that memo was circulated, “[Treasury Secretary Scott] Bessent, Director of National Intelligence Jay Clayton, [Secretary of War Pete] Hegseth and White House officials pressed Lutnick and [Commerce Undersecretary Jeff] Kessler to act, the source said, ‘and they were refusing.'” Kessler oversees Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), charged with enforcement of export controls (among other things).
Finally, in a meeting in the White House Situation Room last Thursday, as the Nvidia scandal was heating up, Axios reports that Bessent, with Hegseth and Rubio in attendance, confronted Lutnick, saying, “How come Megaspeed isn’t on the entities list?” and further pressed him about the lack of implementation of additional export controls.