Trump Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick says the administration is considering federal government partial ownership of defense corporations

The Trump administration is considering taking equity stakes in defense and munitions companies, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Tuesday.

“There’s a monstrous discussion about defense,” Lutnick told CNBC’s Squawk Box when asked whether there is a limit to government ownership of private firms. “Lockheed Martin makes 97 percent of their revenue from the U.S. government. They are basically an arm of the U.S. government.”

His remarks follow the White House’s recent agreement with Intel, under which the government took a 10 percent stake in the chipmaker in exchange for an $8.9 billion investment. That funding drew on grants from the CHIPS Act, though it had not yet been disbursed. President Donald Trump has criticized the Biden-era law and called on Congress to repeal it.

Lutnick said the key factor in determining where the U.S. should hold equity stakes is whether the government is providing “fundamental value” to the company. “If we are adding fundamental value to your business, I think it’s fair for Donald Trump to think about the American people,” he said.

He did not elaborate on how decisions would be made regarding defense firms, saying those matters would be left to Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and other senior Pentagon leaders. “These guys are on it and they’re thinking about it,” Lutnick said.

The Commerce Department and Pentagon declined to comment on Lutnick’s remarks. Trump’s push for equity stakes has drawn criticism from some Republicans who argue it conflicts with traditional free-market principles long embraced by conservatives.