Katie Miller posted that Democrats’ stated plans to pursue junior staffers in President Donald Trump’s administration should be believed, while a separate report says White House lawyers are weighing pardons for some aides.
In her Saturday post on X, Miller wrote: “When Democrats say they are going to prosecute and go after junior Trump staffers, we should believe them.” She connected the warning to remarks by Sen. Brian Schatz of Hawaii in an interview with Sam Stein of The Bulwark.
Schatz pointed to corruption among officials holding deputy assistant secretary posts, describing it as “significant.” He said anyone who had committed an actual federal crime should probably get a lawyer if the statute of limitations had not expired. “You should probably get a lawyer,” he told Stein. Schatz framed the point around individual responsibility for crimes, rather than punishment for everyone who had worked in the Trump administration.
Politico separately reported that Democrats on the House Oversight Committee were considering a closer look at tech billionaire Elon Musk, with the November midterm results a factor in whether they proceed. Rep. Greg Casar of Texas told Politico’s Playbook that lawmakers should also scrutinize powerful businesses and wealthy people he accused of trying to corrupt government, naming Musk as one example. EconoTimes has previously covered Democrats’ possible House inquiries into Musk.
The Independent reported that the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), which Musk headed, cut federal agencies as the administration sought to reduce what it viewed as government waste. The Washington Sun reported that White House lawyers were weighing pardons for junior staff. It said potential pardons could cover staff associated with immigration, the war in Iran or trade, while a source familiar with discussions considered a pardon for every junior official unlikely. Politico tied the possibility of congressional scrutiny to the November midterm results.
