White House Counsel Warns Garcia His Oversight Probes Could ‘Cross the Line Into Blatant Criminality’
The White House has warned Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Calif.), the incoming chairman of the House Oversight Committee, that some of the investigations Democrats are planning could amount to crimes, Punchbowl News reported.
White House counsel Will Scharf sent the letter to Garcia on Monday. It argues that Congress may investigate only for a legitimate legislative purpose and that Democrats’ planned probes are designed to “harass and aggrandize rather than to advance any legitimate legislative end,” according to Punchbowl.
‘Blatant Criminality’
“Beyond being inconsistent with the clear, well-recognized constitutional limitations on your investigative functions, threats to executive branch officials designed to deter them from public service, or process designed merely to abuse or instill fear in the recipient may cross the line into blatant criminality,” Scharf wrote, Punchbowl reported.
“And issuing unlawful subpoenas with the intention of depriving citizens of their constitutional rights and privileges may warrant further investigation,” he added.
Scharf also said the administration would not be “extorted” or “cowed by unlawful process motivated by animus, pettiness, hatred, or any other unlawful motive to intimidate, penalize, or interfere with the lawful functioning of government,” the Daily Beast reported.
‘Lawyer Up’
The letter answers a week of warnings from Garcia. After Democrats won control of both chambers on Nov. 3, he issued a two-word statement, “Lawyer up,” and his team listed targets including “The Trump Crime Family,” “Corrupt Trump admin officials profiting off the presidency” and associates of Jeffrey Epstein, The Hill reported.
He has already sent letters to Jared Kushner and Kimberly Guilfoyle.
“When Republicans go low, what we’re not going to do anymore is just take that, take the high road and turn the other cheek,” Garcia said Sunday, Politico reported. “The days of us not fighting back are over.”
Trump and Blanche Set the Tone
President Donald Trump has called Democrats’ impeachment threats “extortion at the highest level,” writing on Nov. 7 that “they should be held accountable for this,” the Daily Beast reported.
Attorney General Todd Blanche said over the weekend that the Justice Department “could” investigate Democrats over their threats.
Having the White House counsel put that position in a letter to a prospective committee chairman “is a far more serious threat,” Punchbowl wrote, calling it an early sign that the administration won’t cooperate with investigations it does not like. It added that the warning was unlikely to deter Democrats: “There is ample precedent that Congress can investigate nearly anything it wants. But this does set the tone for Trump’s posture toward Democrats in 2027.”
Democrats take control of the House on Jan. 3, when Garcia is expected to gain subpoena power as chairman.
Congress has long fought with presidents of both parties over the reach of its subpoenas, and those fights often end up in court. Scharf’s letter suggests the next round has begun before the new majority is even sworn in.
Content created by Conservative Daily News and some content syndicated through CDN is available for re-publication without charge under the Creative Commons license. Visit our syndication page for details and requirements.
