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Democrats have pledged to aggressively investigate corporate corruption and pursue possible impeachments of Trump administration officials following the party’s stunning midterm victories.
Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee, said there is “real investigative work” to be done on Elon Musk’s purge of federal employees, corporate donations to Donald Trump’s ballroom and Big Oil’s access to resources in Venezuela.
“The days of us not fighting back are over,” Garcia told CNN. State of the Union on Sunday. “Republicans want to play games, they want to play hardball. They’re coming with their full arsenal. We have to do the same thing as the Democrats.”
“There are so many allegations and reports of real payoffs, whether it’s pardons given to billionaires and donors, or companies donating to the ballroom – in exchange for what? We need to find out.”
The remarks come as Democrats prepare to take control of both houses of Congress following Republicans’ electoral rout in Tuesday’s midterm elections, in a scathing rebuke of Trump.
The issue of corruption under the Trump administration has been thrust into the spotlight in recent days following allegations by former Health Department adviser Calley Means who accused Trump aides of blocking reforms to appease corporate donors, sparking outrage among some Republicans.
Democrats are also considering impeachment proceedings against some Trump lieutenants. Hakeem Jeffries, who is set to become House speaker, said he expects “incredibly strong support” within the party for impeaching Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
“(Hegseth) abused his power, undermined our national security and staged this reckless and costly war in Iran, which sent costs skyrocketing for the American people and made the country less secure,” Jeffries told ABC. This week on Sunday.
“Pete Hegseth has to go.”
Incumbent Republican Rep. Thomas Massie said he plans to force a vote to impeach Hegseth in the coming week, even though Democrats won’t have a majority in the chamber until January.
Vermont’s veteran socialist senator Bernie Sanders told CNN on Sunday that he is “absolutely open” to impeaching Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jnr, a move already proposed by South Carolina’s new senator Annie Andrews.
Two Democratic lawmakers, Hank Johnson and Deborah Ross, also expressed support this week for impeaching Attorney General Todd Blanche.
Republicans responded to Democrats’ threats, accusing the party of conducting a witch hunt. Trump on Friday ordered a Justice Department investigation into Democrats following threats of an investigation, accusing them of “extortion at the highest levels.”
“They’re already talking about baseless, factless investigations and indictments,” Blanche told CNN on Sunday, adding that there “may be” grounds for criminal investigations against some Democrats.
“What we have seen over the last few days, and even over the last few weeks, are outright threats, most of them from elected members of Congress and some senators, against anyone who is conservative or Republican,” Blanche said.
“They’ve threatened donors, they’ve threatened individuals who are in college and who might want to work for conservative institutions, or for a conservative government, or for President Trump — and that’s extremely troubling.”
Some Democrats have expressed reservations about stalling investigations during the remainder of Trump’s term, arguing that the party should focus on implementing the policies he campaigned on.
“The biggest priority for me and I think for most Americans, especially those who live paycheck to paycheck, is: Please help us pay the cost of living,” Adam Hamilton, elected as the first Democratic senator from Kansas since the Great Depression, said on NBC’s Meet the Press.
“If I spent the next two years, my first two years in the Senate, investigating, I would be deeply disappointed.”
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