Key facts
- Axios reported that Lutnick has repeatedly stood in the way of the chip-diversion crackdown.
- Trump authorized the crackdown on Thursday, the third such authorization in 2026, per Axios.
- Axios said Trump consulted Elon Musk before approving the crackdown.
- Bessent confronted Lutnick in the Situation Room over his department's resistance to the export controls, Axios reported.
- Lutnick said at the meeting he needed to check with Trump, according to Axios.
US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick stalled President Donald Trump's crackdown on companies suspected of diverting Nvidia's chips to China, Axios reported on November 11, citing high-level sources.
Trump authorized the crackdown on Thursday, the third time in 2026, Axios reported. The outlet said Trump consulted billionaire Elon Musk before giving the go-ahead, and that Lutnick has repeatedly stood in the way.
Axios reported that Lutnick met in the Situation Room on Thursday with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, trade representative Jamieson Greer and Secretary of State Marco Rubio. During the meeting, Bessent confronted Lutnick about resistance from his department on implementing the export controls, according to Axios. Lutnick appeared to agree but said he needed to check with Trump.