President-elect Donald Trump nominated billionaire Howard Lutnick on Tuesday to become his next secretary of the Department of Commerce.
The former Cantor Fitzgerald CEO has served as co-chair of Trump’s presidential-transition team since August.
In a statement, Trump described Lutnick as “a dynamic force on Wall Street” and commended his work in building a “sophisticated process and system” to staff the personnel of the incoming administration.
The decision comes as a surprise, with Linda McMahon and Robert Lighthizer both viewed as likelier candidates for the role. McMahon was an administrator in the Small Business Administration from 2017 to 2019 while Lighthizer served as the U.S. trade representative during the former and future president’s first term.
The Commerce Department is home to thirteen different bureaus, including the Census Bureau, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, and the Patent and Trademark Office. If he is confirmed by the Senate, Lutnick would play a leading role in assisting American businesses while also serving as an intermediary between foreign nations in negotiating trade agreements and other economic deals.
Trump’s former commerce secretary, Wilbur Ross, was closely involved in the former president’s trade war with Beijing, acting as an influential voice for increased tariffs.
Lutnick spoke at Trump’s Madison Square Garden rally in October, claiming the country was most prosperous in the early twentieth century, when there was “no income tax and all we had was tariffs.”
“We had so much money that we had the greatest businessmen of America get together to try to figure out how to spend it,” Lutnick added.
The 63-year-old is also known for founding a family relief fund for 9/11 victims in the wake of the terrorist attack on the World Trade Center. Cantor Fitzgerald’s headquarters resided in the top floors of the North Tower and saw hundreds of employees killed on September 11, 2001, including Lutnick’s brother. Lutnick is also on the board of the National September 11 Memorial and Museum.