WASHINGTON — The White House's top lawyer has warned House Democrats that their planned investigations into President Donald Trump could expose them to criminal action, a threat that serves as an early sign of how combative the administration intends to be once Democrats take control of the House in January.

White House counsel Will Scharf raised the possibility of criminal inquiries into Democratic lawmakers in a letter Monday to Rep. Robert Garcia, D-Calif., who is expected to lead the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee next year.

Scharf argued that Democrats' public promises to investigate and subpoena Trump administration officials "may cross the line into blatant criminality" and could amount to an illegal abuse of power if they do not identify "a legitimate" legislative purpose for their investigations.

He added that "issuing unlawful subpoenas with the intention of depriving citizens of their constitutional rights and privileges may warrant further investigation."

While past administrations have resisted congressional subpoenas, Scharf's letter goes further, suggesting that lawmakers who issue them could face criminal consequences — a claim legal experts say has little basis, given that the letter cites no specific crime and that the Constitution broadly protects congressional oversight.

Garcia dismissed the threats in the letter, calling it an attempt by the White House to infringe on the committee's constitutionally protected right to conduct congressional oversight.

"It appears Donald Trump has something to hide," Garcia said in a statement. "Let's be clear: Congress' authority comes from Article I of the Constitution, not from the permission of the White House."

He added: "We are a co-equal branch of government and will not be deterred by baseless threats from a weaponized DOJ or from the President's lawyers."

Garcia's office said it had not received the letter as of Wednesday, and that he had become aware of it through news reports. The letter was first reported by Punchbowl News.

Josh Chafetz, a Georgetown University law professor who studies Congress' constitutional powers, called the letter "completely laughable."

"I have never seen anyone suggest that members of Congress could be held criminally liable for how they use their oversight power," Chafetz said.

He noted that the three-page letter, with a dozen footnotes, does not specify which law Democrats may be violating.

"What crime?" Chafetz said. "What provision of federal law might they have violated? He doesn't even gesture towards one."

As Democrats prepare to retake control of Congress, they have vowed to investigate Trump and administration officials over alleged corrupt practices.

In an exchange with reporters Tuesday, Garcia said Democrats are already looking into Trump's former chief of staff Susie Wiles and potential deals with political donors that may have resulted in exchanging money for policy changes.

"Just because you're no longer in the administration, whether your name is Susie Wiles, whether it's Kimberly Guilfoyle, whether it's Corey Lewandowski, whether it's Kristi Noem, you are being investigated and there needs to be accountability in that space," Garcia said.

Hours after it was clear Democrats would win back control of the House in last week's midterm elections, Garcia issued a two-word statement: "Lawyer up."

Other Democrats were similarly blunt.

Sen. Ed Markey, D-Mass., said tech executives should brace for investigations, saying that there will be a need to "plant new forests for all of the subpoenas" Democrats will be printing. Rep. Analilia Mejia, D-N.J., said Democrats would be handing out subpoenas "like Mardi Gras beads."

Scharf pointed to such statements in his letter to argue there is concern about their oversight powers being abused.

"Abusive threats and public statements about the indiscriminate issuance of subpoenas, along with threats directed at prospective targets within the Administration make it abundantly clear that any forthcoming investigative processes will be deployed to harass and aggrandize, rather than to advance any legitimate legislative end," he wrote.

The letter cited Supreme Court rulings holding that congressional investigations must serve a legislative purpose. Chafetz, however, said those cases don't support Scharf's argument.

"Legislative purpose is incredibly broad. Almost anything has a legislative purpose," he said. "Certainly, investigating wrongdoing in the executive branch is a core legislative purpose."

And even if a court found an investigation lacked a legislative purpose, Chafetz said the target could refuse to comply with a subpoena but it would not mean the lawmakers committed a crime.

Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., said in an interview that the letter would not deter Democrats from conducting their investigations. But Padilla said the letter, like Trump's appointment last week of Stephen Miller as White House chief of staff, is another sign that the president plans to double down on his agenda in the face of a Democratic Congress.

"And we're going to double down as well," Padilla said.

The White House approach "shouldn't come as a surprise for anybody," Padilla said. "The bullying tactics continue, the weaponization of the Department of Justice continues, but it just goes to show how scared the administration is of facing accountability."

The White House did not respond to a request seeking comment on the letter.

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(Times staff writer Seema Mehta in Los Angeles contributed to this report.)

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