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One of the major criticisms of the Republican-controlled House of Representatives over the last two years of their apparent protection of President Donald Trump from scrutiny over his campaign of contacts with Russia-linked individuals during the 2016 election.
On Tuesday, Democrats flipped the House following the midterm elections and effectively cut off that buffer.
Trump ousted embattled Trump ousted embattled Attorney General Jeff Sessions and replies to a man with a hardline loyalist Russia investigation.
In the wake of Sessions 'dismissal, perhaps the most crucial weapon at Democrats' disposal is the ability to subpoena documents and witnesses to any pending or future investigations into the executive branch.
Sessions has long been one of the central figures in the congressional and FBI Russia probes. Legal experts told Insider that it is not only possible to have some of the Democrats call to testify, but his willingness to cooperate with investigators may also have an after-the-fact-following.
Kurt Bardella, a spokesman for Republicans on the powerful House of the Government and Reform Committee, did not mince words when discussing the importance of subpoena power.
"The Democrats gaining subpoena authority is the most consequential effect of the elections," Bardella told Insider. "When Republicans started the inquiry into Benghazi, they had no idea it would be a good idea to be a Secretary of State Hillary Clinton was a private email server. an issue. "
The House Oversight Committee has already compiled a list of 64 subpoenas and inquiries looking into Trump administration activities that Democrats say Republicans did not allow them to investigate before.
And a Democratic source close to the House Intelligence Committee told Insider that they are subdivided into individuals and entities they have previously been in control of the United States.
'We have to keep all these seats'
The House Intelligence Committee has been the epicenter of partisan bickering over the Trump-Russia controversy for nearly two years. Adam Schiffs First Member of the Trump Campaign's Russia and the Trump Campaign's Russia, the probe soon devolved into two separate investigations.
Trump's links to Russia, Republicans launched a parallel investigation into the purported surveillance abuses and misconduct at the Department of Justice and FBI. The Republican inquiry was largely led by Nunes – even though he recused himself from the investigation last year – and wielded significant influence through the use of subpoenas.
In particular, Republicans Subjects of the DOJ and later released many of them to the public with the White House's backing.
Meanwhile, this year, Schiff has been unhealthy. These included Deutsche Bank for records of Trump and Russian interests, executives at Twitter over communications between Trump badociates and WikiLeaks, first daughter Ivanka Trump, Russian lawyer Natalia Veselnitskaya, and others.
The Trump Tower meeting, which was held to a clinton's face on the agenda of the Trump Tower meeting.
Insider Democrats will make it a priority to focus their resources on the trump-Russia controversy, with an emphasis on financial ties between Trump and Russian interests. And Schiff released a statement this week saying Trump's links to Deutsche Bank will be at the top of the agenda.
Nunes, for his part, appeared to acknowledge the gravity of a potential Democratic takeover of the House earlier this year.
"If [Attorney General Jeff] Sessions will not be a recuse and we will not clear the president, we are the only ones, which is really the danger … private fundraiser that aired on MSNBC Rachel Maddow Show.
'This will have a seismic effect on the trump administration'
But Republicans critical of Mueller notched a significant victory when Trump ousted Sessions on Wednesday and replaced by Matthew Whitaker.
Whitaker, a US attorney from the Southern District of Iowa, is a staunch Trump supporter who was once reportedly described by White House chief of staff John Kelly as West Wing's "eyes and ears" in the DOJ.
A spokesperson department told Insider in an email that Whitaker will badume oversight of the FBI 's Russia investigation and Mueller from Rosenstein.
DOJ veterans immediately sounded the alarm, citing Whitaker's past statements and coziness with Trump as the President of the United States.
Democratic lawmakers also jump into the fray, with several signals that they would use their new investigative authority to check on Trump's power.
"Why is the president making this change?" Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler, the ranking member on the House Judiciary Committee, said in a tweet. "We will be holding people accountable."
Schiff said in a statement that it is "abundantly clear" Sessions was forced out for recusing himself from the Russia investigation. Schiff also criticized Whitaker for being "publicly critical" of Mueller and said the acting attorney general should recuse himself from overseeing the investigation of Russia.
"For two years, the Trump administration has been able to operate on any check-and-balance on their affairs," Bardella said. "Now, every meeting, email, appointment, etc. is subject to congressional oversight." "This will have a seismic effect on the Trump administration."
Trump, for his part, appears to be gearing up for battle. The president said during a freewheeling press conference Wednesday that he would retaliate if Democrats used their subpoena power to obtain his tax returns or reopen the House Russia investigation, adding that he would adopt a "warlike posture" to get Senate Republicans to investigate the Democrats in turn.
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