★ Government Action
Senate confirms top MAGA donor Lutnick as Commerce Secretary
Donor Influence and AccessTrump Cabinet
Filed February 2025
★ The Brief
What happened
On February 18, 2025, the Senate confirmed Lutnick, then chair and CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, as Secretary of Commerce by a 51-45 vote. He co-chaired Trump's 2024 presidential transition team.
Who enabled it
Who benefits
Deal or steal?
Lutnick gave $8.75 million to MAGA Inc. during the 2024 cycle and co-chaired Trump's transition team that selected cabinet picks.
On February 18, 2025, the Senate confirmed Howard Lutnick as Secretary of Commerce by a 51-45 vote. Lutnick had been chair and CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald, the Wall Street investment bank, and co-chaired Trump's 2024 presidential transition team. During the 2024 cycle he gave $8.75 million to Make America Great Again Inc., ranking among the super PAC's top individual donors. Trump announced the nomination on November 19, 2024.
Actors
Who pushed it · 1Who initiated, paid, or pushed the action.
Donald TrumpAnnounced Lutnick's nomination for Commerce Secretary on November 19, 2024.
Beneficiaries
Who gained · 1Who stood to gain.
Howard LutnickConfirmed as Secretary of Commerce by 51-45 Senate vote on February 18, 2025. Previously chair and CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald and co-chair of the 2024 Trump transition team; gave $8.75 million to MAGA Inc. during the 2024 cycle.
Howard Lutnick has paid into Trump’s orbit:
Further reading
- ★ Government ActionMarch 2025Senate confirms WWE co-founder McMahon as Education Secretary
- ★ Government ActionJanuary 2025Senate confirms hedge fund founder Bessent as Treasury Secretary
- ★ Government ActionFebruary 2026Moroun lobbies Lutnick before Trump threatens Gordie Howe Bridge
- ★ Private ActionOctober 2025Corporations pledge funding for Trump's $300M White House ballroom
- ★ Government ActionMay 2025Trump commutes donor Imaad Zuberi's foreign-lobbying sentence
- ★ Government ActionApril 2025Trump pardons Paul Walczak weeks after mother's $1M Mar-a-Lago dinner