Rep. Robert Garcia, who is poised to lead the powerful House Oversight Committee when Democrats take control of Congress next year, vowed to mount an “aggressive” investigative approach, despite President Donald Trump pushing the Justice Department to look into them.
“The days of us not fighting back are over. This idea that we’re every single time not going to actually take on that fight is over,” Garcia told CNN’s Dana Bash on “State of the Union” this morning.
The California Democrat accused Attorney General Todd Blanche of “threatening” lawmakers on the panel with investigations in an attempt to stop them from conducting oversight, adding, “We’re not going to be intimidated.”
“All he wants to do is protect Donald Trump, is protect Donald Trump’s Cabinet and administration officials. That is not his job,” he said. “He also needs to be reminded that oversight is going to do our job.”
Garcia called the DOJ’s stance “ridiculous,” adding, “they’re so thin-skinned.”
Laying out a broad agenda for his committee, Garcia listed Trump’s top advisers and family members, as well as Elon Musk among the targets for investigations.
He said oversight lawmakers believe that Stephen Miller, who Trump named Friday as the new White House chief of staff, has “been at the center of actions that are unconstitutional, unjust, and possibly illegal.”
He called the Trumps the “most corrupt family to ever be in the Oval Office in the White House,” telling Bash that Donald Trump Jr. and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner should be “expected to answer questions” before the committee.
And Garcia said the panel is already looking into allegations by a former top Health and Humans Services adviser that outgoing chief of staff Susie Wiles blocked some health policies to protect corporate interests.
“The fact that political donations could have had an impact here is serious and should be investigated,” he said.