Rep. Elijah E. Cummings (Md.), the ranking Democrat on the House Oversight Committee — the panel with the broadest investigative jurisdiction in Congress — was careful not to presume Democrats would regain control. But he said in an interview it was difficult not to contemplate the possibilities that would come with not only subpoena power, but also a much larger staff and investigative budget.
“You dream every day what you would do if you were in the majority,” he said.
Since Trump took office, Oversight Committee Republicans have blocked more than 50 Democratic subpoena requests ranging from documents pertaining to the administration’s health-care policies to information on the government’s use of chartered airplanes to a demand for testimony from former Trump strategist Stephen K. Bannon.
Cummings acknowledged that his committee would take a close look at Trump and his administration, “exposing it where I believe that it is harmful to our country,” he said, but would also scrutinize policy issues such as prescription drug prices, postal reform and preparations for the 2020 Census.
“I want to actually use the hearings and the investigations to do something,” he said. “I’m not looking for any shows, like theater. I’m looking to try to resolve problems. So we’ll be looking at the Trump administration, but I don’t want people to get confused.”
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