A U.S. government panel that reviews foreign takeovers of American companies should continue to focus on national security, Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said, downplaying speculation that the Trump administration would expand its authority.

"For national security reasons, we can block investment, and that will be something we continue to do," Mnuchin said Monday in an interview with Bloomberg Television, when asked about the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S., which is known as CFIUS.

Chaired by Mnuchin, the panel reviews foreign acquisitions of U.S. companies for national security risks. Both Democratic and Republican lawmakers have been pressing the Treasury Department for years to broaden CFIUS's purview to include foreign investments into so-called "soft power" institutions, such as Hollywood movie studios.