Trump Orders Justice Department to Investigate Democrats, Naming Senator Slotkin; Attorney General Blanche Says Oversight Members Should Be 'Very Worried'
WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump, in a Truth Social post on November 7, ordered the Justice Department to immediately investigate what he called Democratic 'extortion,' naming Michigan Senator Elissa Slotkin. Attorney General Todd Blanche echoed the president the next day on CNN's State of the Union, saying members of the incoming House Oversight Committee should be 'very worried.'
Trump wrote that Democrats 'are going around threatening a lot of people, including the Attorney General of the United States, and others, with Impeachment and many other forms of punishment,' even though, he said, they admit there is no reason to do so and no impeachable acts have been committed. He called it 'extortion at the highest level,' wrote that 'the imprisonment should be against these EXTORTIONISTS,' and added: 'By copy of this statement, I am ordering the Department of Justice to look into this criminal act, immediately!' In a second post he urged that threats against donors be reported to the Justice Department or directly to him. Trump presented no specific evidence and did not produce any threatening letters.
Slotkin, the senator he named, had said at the University of Chicago on October 13 that she hoped young people considering jobs in the administration would weigh the legal risks. Responding to Trump, she said it should not be controversial that breaking the law or using taxpayer dollars to enrich oneself brings accountability.
On CNN, asked repeatedly what crime any Democrat had committed, Blanche did not name one, saying it depended on what was said. He also said the Justice Department would defend Chief of Staff Stephen Miller if Miller were investigated. Rep. Robert Garcia, who is set to chair the Oversight Committee in the new Congress, responded that the committee would not be intimidated.
Democrats won back both chambers of Congress in the November 3 midterms; the new Congress is sworn in on January 3, 2027, when Democrats will hold subpoena and oversight powers. Politico reported that Trump's characterization of Democrats' public statements about oversight as 'extortion' misrepresents what lawmakers have actually said. As of November 8, the Justice Department had not confirmed opening any investigation of a Democratic lawmaker on the president's order.
(Source: CNN)
Source: CNN
Published by GSM · USA (original Chinese edition)
Photo: 图：司法部长 Todd Blanche（资料图，为其11月9日在密西西比州 Jackson 出席司法部拨款颁授仪式画面，司法部官方直播截图），本站档案图复用。 / Photo: Attorney General Todd Blanche (file photo, speaking at a Justice Department award ceremony in Jackson, Mississippi, on November 9; still from the official DOJ livestream). GSM archive image reused.
