President Donald Trump called Nancy Pelosi on Tuesday night to congratulate her, and a spokesperson for Pelosi said that Trump “acknowledged” calls for bipartisanship made in her victory speech. | Jim Watson/AFP/Getty Images White House Trump threatens retaliatory investigations if Dems push oversight

President Donald Trump warned Wednesday that Democrats preparing to ramp up oversight of his administration when they take over the House majority next year could find themselves on the receiving end of retaliatory investigations courtesy of Senate Republicans.

The president said Democrats could face investigation for leaking classified information, an allegation he leveled without offering evidence to back it up.


“If the Democrats think they are going to waste Taxpayer Money investigating us at the House level, then we will likewise be forced to consider investigating them for all of the leaks of Classified Information, and much else, at the Senate level. Two can play that game!” Trump wrote online Wednesday morning.

When Democrats take control of the House in January, they will assume the chairmanships of the chamber’s committees, with accompanying subpoena power. Newly minted Democratic chairs are almost certain to use their powers to conduct more rigorous oversight of the Trump administration after being mostly rebuffed in those efforts while Republicans controlled committee gavels.

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It is unclear whether Senate Republicans would use their expanded majority to heed Trump’s calls for retaliatory investigations, and the president offered no proof of his allegations that Democrats have leaked privileged information.

Democrats leading the House Intelligence Committee are likely to revive a probe into whether the Trump campaign colluded with Russia to interfere in the 2016 presidential election, after the committee’s previous investigation degenerated into partisan conflict and was shut down by current Chairman Devin Nunes (R-Calif.) amid fierce debate about its conclusions.

While Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), the House minority leader who is expected to be the next House speaker, has not outlined explicit plans to investigate the president, in a victory speech on Tuesday she told supporters that the Democratic House would focus on “restoring the Constitution's checks and balances to the Trump administration.”

The president called Pelosi on Tuesday night to congratulate her, and a spokesperson for Pelosi said that Trump “acknowledged” calls for bipartisanship made in her victory speech.

On Wednesday, counselor to the president Kellyanne Conway said that while Trump would reveal more about his conversation with Pelosi in a late morning news conference, she “somehow on the phone didn't mention investigations and subpoenas.”

In an interview on Fox News, Conway warned that Democrats could subpoena and investigate Trump “at their own peril.”