White House Counsel Warns Garcia on Oversight Investigations

White House counsel Will Scharf warned incoming House Oversight Committee chairman Robert Garcia that planned investigations and subpoenas could cross constitutional limits and, in some circumstances, amount to criminal conduct. Garcia rejected the warning, saying Congress has broad authority to investigate and will not be deterred from oversight.

Scharf sent the letter Monday, and it was made public Wednesday. He argued that Congress may use subpoenas only for oversight purposes tied to a legitimate legislative objective. The letter said threats intended to intimidate executive branch officials or processes designed to abuse or instill fear could cross into criminality, and that unlawful subpoenas intended to deprive people of constitutional rights might warrant further investigation.

Scharf cited Garcia’s postelection “lawyer up” remark and statements by other Democratic lawmakers about issuing subpoenas. He presented those comments as evidence that future inquiries could be intended to harass officials rather than advance legislation. The letter warned of possible executive-branch scrutiny but did not establish that any investigation or subpoena had begun, or that a court had...