Blanche leaves door open to prosecuting Democrats after Trump order

US Attorney General Todd Blanche has declined to rule out prosecuting Democratic lawmakers after President Donald Trump ordered the Justice Department to investigate what he called threats against his administration.

Asked on CNN on Sunday whether Democrats could face imprisonment, Blanche said: “It depends on what the crime is and what they’ve done.” He did not identify a criminal statute or confirm that an investigation had begun, according to Axios.

Trump had ordered the department on Saturday to look into what he called a criminal act, accusing Democrats of threatening officials and donors with investigations and impeachment. Democrats are due to take control of the House of Representatives in January.

Blanche told CNN that he welcomed Congress’s oversight role, but argued that Democrats’ remarks about investigating cabinet members and companies went beyond it. He accused Democrats of threatening donors and students who might want to work for conservative organisations or the Trump administration.

Mediaite linked Blanche’s comments about students to remarks by Democratic Senator Elissa Slotkin, who said she wanted graduates to think that working for Trump might be “buying myself a ton of problems I don’t want” and to avoid doing so. Blanche also pointed to Democratic congressman Robert Garcia’s warning to Trump allies to “lawyer up”.

The White House later published selected excerpts from Blanche’s interviews, describing Democrats’ plans as threats of investigations and retribution.

Garcia, who is expected to chair the House Oversight Committee, told CNN after Blanche’s appearance that Democrats would not be intimidated. “We have a job to do, and we’re going to do it aggressively,” he said. Garcia also challenged Blanche’s assertion that his role includes defending administration officials before Congress, saying the attorney general should defend the Constitution and act as “the people’s lawyer”.