Good Thursday evening. In this edition: Jensen Huang steps down from Nvidia as lawmakers call for investigations.
Plus, DC shooting, NYC building collapse and military families.
Nvidia
Jensen Huang resigned as Nvidia's CEO amid mounting scrutiny over his affair with a woman suspected of spying for the Chinese government, but lawmakers in both parties are calling for investigations and want the ousted co-founder to appear before Congress.
The controversy has raised national security concerns in Washington and renewed debate over U.S. restrictions on the sale of advanced artificial intelligence chips to China.
Nvidia announced that CFO Colette Kress would take over as interim CEO while the company searches for a permanent replacement.
The resignation followed reports that Mr. Huang had an extramarital affair with Alice Huang, a former executive at Singapore-based Megaspeed whom U.S. intelligence officials suspect of spying for Beijing.
Mr. Huang acknowledged being unfaithful to his wife in a statement to employees Sunday, although he did not identify the woman.
China has denied the espionage allegations, and Nvidia has said it has no reason to believe its confidential information or national security was compromised.
House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) called for congressional investigations into the controversy, saying lawmakers had "more questions than answers."
"We need a classified briefing made available to members of Congress as it relates to the Nvidia situation, and to the extent that our national security has been compromised, the American people deserve answers, and we're going to work to make sure that happens," he told reporters.
Tech giants have been bracing for more congressional scrutiny following Democrats' sweeping victories in the midterm elections, and the Nvidia scandal will only ratchet up the pressure.
Rep. Jeffries, who is on track to become speaker in January, said Rep. Gregory Meeks (D-NY), the incoming chair of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, and Rep. Jim Himes (D-CT), the incoming chair of the House Intelligence Committee, would lead investigations into Nvidia in the new Congress.
But lawmakers in both parties are seeking to get Mr. Huang before Congress as soon as next week and calls are growing for stricter export controls on advanced chips.
"Nvidia must now change its corporate practices and appoint leadership that makes national security its top priority. In Congress we must act quickly to pass bipartisan export control legislation in the year-end national defense bill."
Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) also said the controversy was strengthening the case for restricting chip exports to China.
"The export controls on chips to China has been a big issue around here. I'm in favor of limiting those exports, and I think there's a developing consensus in Congress that is an important position to take," the outgoing speaker told reporters. "Especially in the light of recent developments, it makes sense."
President Trump, who developed a close relationship with Mr. Huang and supported easing certain restrictions on Nvidia chip exports to China, defended the executive earlier this week, saying he had spoken with Mr. Huang and believed he had been unaware of the woman's suspected intelligence activities.
"I know the FBI is looking into it," he told reporters Monday. "I think that he'll be in good shape."
The president again praised Mr. Huang on Thursday and suggested that former Apple CEO Tim Cook should replace him.
"NOW THAT Nvidia CEO JENSEN HUANG, who has done a fantastic job, has resigned, there is only one man to take his place — TIM COOK of Apple," he wrote on Truth Social. "A Legend replaces a Legend!"
Nvidia's shares fell sharply Thursday following the announcement as investors assessed the implications of losing the executive who helped make the company one of the world's most valuable.
One person was killed and four others wounded in a shooting Thursday morning in Washington, DC's Logan Circle neighborhood, prompting a massive police response. The gunman opened fire inside a VIDA Fitness gym before shooting additional victims and barricading himself inside a nearby apartment building. After an hourlong standoff, police found the suspect with an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound. He was later pronounced dead. One of the surviving victims remains in critical condition, while the other three sustained non-life-threatening injuries. Police said the suspect had been involved in a dispute with his building's homeowners association, but a motive has not been established. Mayor Muriel Bowser (D) called the shooting a "senseless act of gun violence" and praised first responders for bringing the situation under control. "We're devastated," she told reporters.
At least eight people, including two children, were killed and 18 others injured when a three-story building collapsed Wednesday afternoon in Brooklyn, New York. The building collapsed into an adjacent construction site where workers were excavating. Four firefighters were among those injured, with one person remaining in critical condition. Rescue crews continued searching the rubble Thursday despite heavy rain. Mayor Zohran Mamdani (D) pledged a "comprehensive and thorough investigation" into the collapse and ordered inspections at approximately 100 construction sites associated with companies involved in the project. City records show inspectors previously issued a stop-work order at the neighboring construction site over safety violations. "There are no words for a loss of this magnitude," Mayor Mamdani said. "My heart is with the families and loved ones of those we have lost, those who are injured and everyone grieving today."
First lady Melania Trump and second lady Usha Vancevisited Fort Rucker in Alabama to thank soldiers and military families ahead of Thanksgiving. The first lady praised the sacrifices made by military spouses and children, urging Americans to remember families with "an open seat at their Thanksgiving table" because of deployments. "Your role is profound," she told the families. "While your loved ones are deployed, it is up to you to keep your family strong, keep your children safe, and keep your homes full of love. This is a big responsibility." The two also visited Ellis D. Parker Elementary School on the Army post, where they spent time with kindergarten and first-grade students.
For your radar…
Chris Christie, the former Republican governor of New Jersey, joins C-SPAN's Washington Journal Primetime on Thursday night to discuss the midterm results and how he's weighing another presidential run in 2028. Watch LIVE on C-SPAN at 9pm ET.
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