US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent publicly blamed the Commerce Department on Friday for a delay in designating an Nvidia customer as a possible national security threat, as some of President Donald Trump’s advisers began discussing whether Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick should be dismissed.

The dispute is the first open split inside the administration since Nvidia chief executive Jensen Huang resigned on Thursday.

What Bessent said

Speaking on CNBC, Bessent said a broad range of the administration — the Treasury and State departments, the Pentagon and the US Trade Representative — had favoured placing the company Megaspeed on an export blacklist, and that it was the Commerce Department, which Lutnick leads, that did not follow through.

“Commerce… has the pen. You would have to ask them about their internal processes,” Bessent said, CNN reported.

Pressure on Lutnick

Advisers shaken by the fallout from Huang’s resignation have begun discussing whether Lutnick should be removed, CNN reported, citing people familiar with the conversations. Trump has also taken calls from administration officials and outside advisers raising concerns about the secretary.

The White House has so far backed him. In a statement issued on Thursday — before Bessent’s remarks — it said Trump “maintains complete confidence in the secretary and his ability to carry out the position as the most transformative Commerce Secretary in modern history.”

Trump and Lutnick are longtime friends, and CNN’s sources said it was not clear what the president would do.

Summoned to the Senate

Separately, the Senate Banking Committee has called both Huang and Lutnick to testify. Chairman Tim Scott requested on Thursday that they appear at a public hearing on 3 December, and said the pair could face subpoenas if they refuse, Al Jazeera reported.

Huang resigned on Thursday amid disclosures of extramarital affairs, including one with a woman US authorities suspect of spying for China. This desk has covered the investigation, the resignation and the board’s response and the share price fall.

Not reported

The filings do not describe what Megaspeed does, where it is based, or what its relationship with Nvidia involves beyond its being a customer. They give no date for when other agencies proposed the blacklisting or how long Commerce is said to have delayed, and carry no response from Lutnick or the Commerce Department to Bessent’s accusation. Neither Huang nor Lutnick has said whether they will attend the 3 December hearing.

Sourcing

CNN reported Bessent’s remarks and the internal discussions about Lutnick; Al Jazeera, working with the Associated Press, reported the Senate summons. Hiru News carried a Sinhala summary of the CNN report on Friday evening, which is how the story reached Sri Lankan readers. Hiru’s headline poses the question of Lutnick’s position; the underlying CNN reporting describes advisers discussing a dismissal, not a decision taken.

Sources