Friday, November 13, 2026 Vol. I · No. 23 · Afternoon Edition Print size
Election 2026 494 of 505 races called See the results → The GOP Files Receipts on the Republican-run Washington · Sourced · Dated · On the record On Instagram 5.6M plays and counting @thegopfiles →
The Wire
Navy quietly fired submarine and destroyer leaders, Democrats say Congress was not told Miller memo requires White House staff to get counsel's approval before meeting lobbyists DOJ memo tells federal agencies to put English first and cut other languages On tape: Trump's Jan. 6 pardons told ICE it was beyond the law, Rep. Al Green says on the House floor Garcia calls Blanche's warning a threat; DOJ chief cites Constitution Bessent says Treasury wanted Megaspeed blacklisted, but 'Commerce has the pen' Postal Service to raise package prices Jan. 17 after $6.5 billion loss Trump's Medicare agency extends freeze on new hospices and home health agencies to May IRS raises 401(k) limit to $25,500 for 2027, with $11,750 catch-up for ages 60 to 63 On tape: Cory Booker tells Kash Patel a federal judge vowed to toss subpoenas for reporters' phone records Navy quietly fired submarine and destroyer leaders, Democrats say Congress was not told Miller memo requires White House staff to get counsel's approval before meeting lobbyists DOJ memo tells federal agencies to put English first and cut other languages On tape: Trump's Jan. 6 pardons told ICE it was beyond the law, Rep. Al Green says on the House floor Garcia calls Blanche's warning a threat; DOJ chief cites Constitution Bessent says Treasury wanted Megaspeed blacklisted, but 'Commerce has the pen' Postal Service to raise package prices Jan. 17 after $6.5 billion loss Trump's Medicare agency extends freeze on new hospices and home health agencies to May IRS raises 401(k) limit to $25,500 for 2027, with $11,750 catch-up for ages 60 to 63 On tape: Cory Booker tells Kash Patel a federal judge vowed to toss subpoenas for reporters' phone records

Corruption & Accountability · Report · File No. 261113-480

Lutnick agrees to testify on Nvidia as Republicans and Democrats press for answers

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick will appear before the Senate Banking Committee after Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang resigned over reports of an affair with a suspected Chinese spy. Lawmakers in both parties want to know whether chip export controls were loosened.

By the Investigations Desk · · 2 min read

Every quote in this story (4) was matched word for word against its source. How we work

My clippings
The Grift FilesWhat Howard Lutnick has gained: the card, the timeline and the records →
Howard Lutnick
Howard Lutnick. Photo: Daniel Torok, Public domain

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick agreed Thursday to testify before Congress about national security concerns in the growing Nvidia scandal. He did so under pressure from both parties 1.

The move came after Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., chair of the Senate Banking Committee, sent letters to Lutnick and Jensen Huang. Huang resigned as Nvidia's CEO earlier that day, after reports that he had an affair with a suspected Chinese spy 1.

On tapeCNN · Nov 12
CNN report on bipartisan calls for congressional testimony over the Nvidia scandal.Video: CNN on YouTube, “GOP Senator demands Trump cabinet members testify over Nvidia scandal”. It plays from YouTube when you press play.

A Lutnick spokesperson, Kristen Eichamer, told NBC News that he “has proactively agreed to appear voluntarily before the Banking Committee to address their questions.” Scott asked Huang to appear Dec. 3 and Lutnick to appear Dec. 10 1.

What lawmakers want to know

Scott wrote that the Commerce Department has a “central role in issuing and enforcing export control regulations.” Export controls are the rules that decide which advanced technology American companies may sell abroad 1.

From Channel GOPJeffries says Trump's 16-seat gerrymander plan failedHakeem Jeffries · 271 plays · captioned, with the source named

Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said Lutnick should appear voluntarily. He added that if Lutnick doesn't, “He may need to be subpoenaed.” A subpoena is a legal order to testify. Blumenthal said he wants to know, “Were export controls relaxed?” 1

Richard Blumenthal
He may need to be subpoenaed.
Richard Blumenthal, U.S. senator, Democrat-Connecticut1

Republicans are pressing too. Sen. Jim Banks, R-Ind., said on Fox News that chips appear to have been exported “to defy President Trump’s orders for those exports to be stopped.” Sen. Kevin Cramer, R-N.D., said Lutnick “certainly should” testify 1.

Sen. Thom Tillis, R-N.C., wants it sooner than December. He is leaving Congress in January, and he noted that Democrats will take control of both chambers next year 1.

Come here before Thanksgiving. Give us the facts,
Thom Tillis, U.S. senator, Republican-North Carolina1

House action and the White House response

In the House, Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Brian Mast, R-Fla., said Huang agreed to brief lawmakers. Mast asked for a closed-door, transcribed interview on Dec. 1. He said a subpoena would be issued if Huang did not confirm by Friday evening 1.

House Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries called Huang's resignation the “right thing” and demanded a classified briefing for all members of Congress. He said Reps. Greg Meeks and Jim Himes, the top Democrats on the Foreign Affairs and Intelligence committees, are digging into what happened 2.

Meeks and two other Democrats on the Foreign Affairs Committee signed a letter Monday demanding answers from Lutnick. The letter cited “concerning links to China” and “alarming reports of potential Chinese intelligence ties” to Huang 1.

Nvidia has said it complies with U.S. export laws. The White House said the president “maintains complete confidence in the secretary” 1.

Why it matters

That matters because the two men were close. In September 2025, Huang said Lutnick was “the person I talk to most in the administration” 1.

The Dec. 10 date is a request from Scott, and Lutnick has agreed to appear. What he will say under questioning is not yet known 1.

The Record

  1. House Foreign Affairs Democrats Meeks, Amo and Kamlager-Dove sign a letter demanding answers from Lutnick on AI chip export approvals 1.
  2. Huang resigns as Nvidia CEO; Sen. Tim Scott asks Huang and Lutnick to testify, and Lutnick agrees to appear 1.
  3. Date Scott requested for Lutnick's public Senate Banking Committee hearing 1.
Republish this story on your site or in your newsletter

Any site, blog or newsletter may run this story free of charge. Keep the credit line and its link to the original, do not sell it, and edit only for length or house style (the full terms). Photos carry their own licenses, noted under each photo on this page, so use the text alone unless a credit says otherwise.

Paste it into your editor's HTML view. The one-pixel image at the end tells our newsroom the story ran; it stores no reader data.

Sources

  1. NBC News, “Howard Lutnick agrees to testify as bipartisan pressure grows over Nvidia scandal” (2026-11-13). nbcnews.com/politics/congress/commerce-secretary-howard-lutn
  2. PBS NewsHour, “WATCH: 'More questions than answers' about Nvidia's Huang, Jeffries says in news conference” (2026-11-12). pbs.org/newshour/politics/watch-more-questions-than-answers-

Found an error? Tell the newsroom. Corrections are noted at the top of the story.

More from the files

Delivered free to your door*

The Morning Edition

One short email at 7 a.m. Eastern: the day's top files, one clip worth your time, and the race to watch. Plain English, large type, no clutter.

*Your inbox. Free. Unsubscribe with one click, any time.