White House confronts Democrats over planned probes, claiming possible 'criminality'

WASHINGTON (AP) — The White House has issued a warning to Democrats over their planned probes into the Trump administration, going as far as claiming that such investigations — a standard oversight function of Congress -- may amount to “blatant criminality.”

White House counsel Will Scharf issued the warning in a letter dated Monday to Rep. Robert Garcia, the top Democrat on the House Oversight Committee.

Garcia most likely would chair the powerful panel in the new Democratic-controlled Congress that is seated in January. Garcia warned Trump officials to “lawyer up” as his party was on the way to stunning victories in last week's midterm election.

In response, Scharf wrote that “threats to executive branch officials designed to deter them from public service, or process designed merely to abuse or instill fear in the recipient may cross the line into blatant criminality." The letter’s existence was first reported by Punchbowl News.

Garcia said in response to the letter that “it appears Donald Trump has something to hide” and stressed that Congress’ investigative powers do not need the “permission of the White House.”

“Congress has wide latitude to conduct investigations and oversight, an authority inherent in the power to legislate,” Garcia said. “The American people voted overwhelmingly for us to pass laws to root out corruption and abuse.”

Democrats are preparing a vast oversight agenda to look at how Trump and his family have become wealthier since he returned to office. The Republican president and his White House have long denied any wrongdoing.

Garcia also wants to look at the administration’s handling of the Jeffrey Epstein investigation and Immigration and Customs Enforcement operations. Other targets include Trump’s White House ballroom and other construction projects, as well as the Trump family’s role in mineral deals and Trump’s crypto dealings with special envoy Steve Witkoff.

Attorney General Todd Blanche said in a CNN interview that aired Sunday that “there could be” a crime to investigate if rhetoric from Democrats turned threatening. He appeared to strike a more conciliatory tone during an appearance in Missouri this week, saying “Congress has oversight authority. It always has, it always will. The Department of Justice, the federal government, works with Congress to address questions they have — whether it’s through subpoenas or letters — so we’re not going to stop working with Congress.”

“Nothing I’ve said this weekend, or in the past, should suggest otherwise,” he added.

Some lawmakers cautioned Democrats as well as the White House against overreaching.

Outgoing Republican Rep. Thomas Massie of Kentucky, a Trump critic, said he hopes Democrats don't squander their new powers on “stupid things.”

“I hope they have real hearings about real things, not another Russiagate,” he said, referring to a previous congressional inquiry into ties between Trump's first presidential campaign in 2016 and Russia. Trump repeatedly denounced that investigation as a “hoax.”

“I think there is some real corruption there around the fringes,” Massie said about Trump and some of those around the president. Massie lost his primary election to a Trump-backed GOP challenger.

Rep. Mark DeSaulnier, D-Calif., who is expected to be the next House Ethics Committee chairman, said he would not back down from any investigations because of warnings from the White House.

“If they're trying to intimidate, at least for me, it’s not going to get me,” said DeSaulnier, who was a Republican before he switched to the Democratic Party in 2000. “I don’t work for a mafia, a mob organization.”

Associated Press writer Eric Tucker and AP video journalist Nathan Ellgren contributed to this report.

Rep. Thomas Massie, R-Ky., speaks outside of the Capitol about articles of impeachment he introduced against Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Monday, Nov. 9, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)

The U.S. Capitol is photographed Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

President Donald Trump speaks in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House Monday, Nov. 9, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

New members of the 120th Congress gather for the first day of new member orientation at the Capitol, Monday, Nov. 9, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Allison Robbert)

Attorney General Todd Blanche stand in the door of Air Force One was Marine One lands with President Donald Trump aboard, at Joint Base Andrews, Md., Friday, Oct. 30, 2026. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen))

President Donald Trump, followed by Dana White, UFC president and CEO, arrives to speak in the James Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House Monday, Nov. 9, 2026, in Washington. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The driver of a minivan that crashed outside a Los Angeles metro station, killing three women and critically injuring two more, was arrested on suspicion of driving under the influence and three counts of murder, police said Wednesday.

Authorities say the driver was able to talk but appeared in shock after Tuesday's crash, which hit pedestrians and food vendors at a busy intersection in the North Hollywood neighborhood during the height of the evening commute.

Police identified the driver as Ihor Demianenko, 61, a resident of the Valley Village neighborhood of Los Angeles. Jail records show Demianenko was booked early Wednesday, with bail set at a little over $6 million. He was treated for minor injuries at a hospital, police said.

It was not immediately clear if Demianenko had a lawyer who could respond to the allegations. In California, drivers under the influence of drugs or alcohol can be charged with murder under certain circumstances.

The white Toyota Sienna was traveling at an “unsafe speed” at around 6 p.m. when it veered to the right, ran off the road and collided with a light, Los Angeles police said in a news release Wednesday. It came to rest under a food vendor’s tent.

The force of the collision threw victims in different directions, according to the news release. The driver was trapped in the vehicle until rescuers arrived.

Luis Luna-Guzman was working at a burger stand nearby when he heard a loud boom and saw people on the ground along with food and cups. People started running toward the crash.

He found an injured woman lying near some bike racks, her face, arms and legs bloody, he said, recalling her eyes were closed as she moaned in pain.

“I told her, ‘Don’t move, help is coming,’” Luna-Guzman said, adding that he saw a woman’s body nearby, while another woman was lying unmoving on the stairs leading to the station.

The three women who died were between the ages of 40 and 60, according to the police news release. They have not been identified. The two injured women are in their 50s.

The minivan was still on the sidewalk Tuesday night under the food vendor’s tent, its driver’s side door open and an air bag deployed. Fire engines and emergency crews worked nearby as a helicopter flew overhead.

Investigators will go through video of the crash frame by frame, LAPD Chief Jim McDonnell said.

“It will be probably a prolonged but a very deliberate investigation to determine what happened here,” he said.

Thanawala reported from Atlanta.

Members of law enforcement walks next to a damaged car at the scene of a vehicle crash, involving multiple fatalities, Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026, in the North Hollywood section of Los Angeles. (AP Photo/David Swanson)

This photo made with a smartphone, shows the scene of a vehicle crash, involving multiple fatalities, on Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026, in the North Hollywood section of Los Angeles. (AP Photo/David Swanson)

Debris lies at the scene of a vehicle crash, involving multiple fatalities, Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026, in the North Hollywood section of Los Angeles. (AP Photo/David Swanson)

A damaged vehicle lies at the scene of a vehicle crash, involving multiple fatalities, Tuesday, Nov. 10, 2026, in the North Hollywood section of Los Angeles. (AP Photo/David Swanson)