Howard Lutnick Exposes Washington’s Biggest Lies

September 11 defined Lutnick’s adult life: Cantor Fitzgerald lost 658 employees, including his 36-year-old brother Gary and 39-year-old best friend Doug, while 27 guests from his 40th-birthday party were killed. He committed 25% of profits to victims’ families and said he cried every day until October 21, 2004.

Lutnick’s move from donor to governing insider accelerated in late 2023, when he says Trump asked for help and he immediately gave $10 million; he later became transition co-chair. (The American Presidency Project) He says he had already given roughly $10 million for 2020 and raised $15 million, while their friendship dated back 33 years.

Lutnick says Trump’s Panama Canal focus began with a two-word assignment—“Panama Canal”—that he turned into research, legal work and on-the-ground video. A shipping-company friend filmed a canal transit on two iPhones; after Lutnick reported “I have your path,” Trump posted an American-flag canal image that afternoon.

Lutnick says DOGE paired about $1 trillion in spending cuts with roughly $1 trillion in new revenue from tariffs and other sources. He says he initially structured it as a “gratis vendor” outside normal employment, and Trump agreed that a balanced budget could justify waiving federal income tax below $150,000.

The transition operated like a compressed executive search: eight candidates appeared on-screen with résumé highlights and speaking clips, and presentation ability was deliberately evaluated. Lutnick says every nominee was the first choice except Matt Gaetz, with Pam Bondi already positioned as the immediate fallback once the team reviewed the congressional report. (Reuters)

Lutnick says he uses his friendship with Trump to secure free software from major technology companies by having CEOs commit directly to the president. He named Google, Microsoft and Amazon, then said the government would help them on matters he considered “fair” in return.

At the interview, the proposed $5 million “gold card” offered vetted buyers permanent U.S. residency without taxing their non-U.S. income. Lutnick said he was implementing it, Musk was building the software, 1,000 cards had already been sold, and Trump’s target of one million sales—$5 trillion—was reasonable.

Lutnick’s sovereign-wealth idea would make federal procurement generate investment returns: when government contracts raise a supplier’s value, taxpayers would receive warrants or upside. He cited vaccine and missile makers and predicted he and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent could generate more than $1 trillion for the government during the term.