An embattled Cabinet member in President Donald Trump’s administration received a curt instruction from an unlikely source Tuesday while testifying before a Senate Appropriations subcommittee.
Howard Lutnick, the secretary of commerce and a longtime Wall Street executive, was testifying formally about his department and broadband funding issues. The hearing made waves as it quickly became dominated by questions about his past relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.
But in another eyebrow-raising moment, Sen. John Kennedy (R-LA) pressed Lutnick about his knowledge of his own department.
“The Census Bureau is under your jurisdiction, is it not?” asked Kennedy.
“Yes, it is,” replied Lutnick.
“And the Census Bureau is in charge of defining what it means to be poor or in poverty in America, is that correct?” Kennedy asked.
Lutnick took a long pause before venturing a guess.
“I think it does economic analysis for America,” he replied.
“But it also defines poverty level, does it not?” pressed Kennedy.
Lutnick’s response earned him a biting response from Kennedy.
“I don’t know if it’s the defining -” he began, before Kennedy interrupted.
“Well you need to look because it does,” a frustrated Kennedy concluded.
“Ok,” Lutnick said, taken aback.
But Kennedy wasn’t finished.
“If you know, this isn’t a quiz, if you know, what’s the percentage of Americans who live at or below poverty level?” Kennedy continued.
“I don’t know,” Lutnick admitted.
“Ok. It’s around 11 percent,” Kennedy answered for him. “It’s been constant.”
KENNEDY: The Census Bureau is under your jurisdiction & responsible for defining what it means to be poor, is that right?LUTNICK: I don’t know K: Well you need to look, bc it does. What’s the % of Americans who live below poverty level?L: I don’t knowK: It’s around 11%. It’s been constant [image or embed] — Aaron Rupar (@atrupar.com) February 10, 2026 at 8:09 AM
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