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After managing to take control of Congress in the US midterm elections, the Democrats are already discussing actions by Donald Trump's government that could be the target of investigations.
Control of the House of Representatives and the Senate gives the party the power to issue subpoenas — summonses to testify or produce documents — and to receive additional funds to launch investigations.
Democrats have considered the possibility of investigating important figures in the Republican government, and possibly the president himself. According to people familiar with the behind-the-scenes, party members have already begun drawing up a list of possible investigations and witnesses.
Here are some possible targets.
1. Trump's family and finances
Democrats have already made clear that lucrative businesses linked to the Trump family's vast business empire will be the main targets of any initial investigations.
"We want to ensure that [American] taxpayers' money is used wisely and is not stolen or misappropriated because of corruption," Virginia Democratic Rep. Suhas Subramanyam, a member of the House Oversight Committee, told the BBC.
Among the possible points of investigation are the links between the government and companies, particularly those in cryptocurrencies; the international business dealings of the president's son-in-law, Jared Kushner; and defense contracts awarded to companies linked to the Trump family.
Another subject that can be investigated is the US$400 million plane (more than R$2.1 billion) offered by Qatar to be used with part of the Air Force One plane fleet (the president's official means of air transport).
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"What shocks me is not just that this government, cabinet members and even the president and his family have been corrupt and acted for their own benefit, but that they have been so brazen and open about it," Subramanyam said.
The White House has repeatedly denied allegations of wrongdoing.
"Democrats have no agenda to improve the lives of the American people, only plans to obstruct and baselessly attack President Trump's commonsense agenda," said White House spokeswoman Olivia Wales.
A White House official said the administration is "always prepared" to respond to oversight, regardless of who is in Congress.
2. Pete Hegseth and the Pentagon
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Democratic parliamentarians promised to investigate the role of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth in the war with Iran, which began in February. The number of civilian victims, expenditure on the conflict and accusations of a shortage of ammunition and poorly prepared facilities could be investigated.
Another matter to be investigated, according to a source familiar with the discussions, could be the sequence of attacks on boats in the Caribbean, which according to the Trump administration were transporting drugs.
In April, a group of Democratic representatives filed a rare impeachment request against Hegseth. They cited the war in Iran and accused him of "serious crimes and misdemeanors."
Impeachment requires only a simple majority in the House of Representatives, but conviction — and subsequent removal from office — requires two-thirds of the Senate. No member of the presidential cabinet has ever been removed in this way.
Some experts believe that ultimately, negative publicity resulting from congressional investigations could lead to Hegseth's firing or resignation.
"[If] this harms the image of the White House and negatively affects media coverage, President Trump will probably fire employees like this because he doesn't want that bad publicity," says David Miller, a political science professor and presidential expert at American University in Washington, D.C.
"In some ways, this could be a victory for Democrats."
Richard Painter, former head of the White House ethics department during the George W. Bush administration, tells the BBC that the decision to start the war should be analyzed thoroughly.
"The most important issue is this: This war was never authorized by the United States Congress, and I don't care who the Secretary of Defense is," he said.
"The Constitution says Congress is the one who declares war."
In a statement, Pentagon press secretary Kingsley Wilson defended Hegseth's record, calling him a "transformative leader" who "drastically reduced bureaucracy, spurred innovation and delivered results for our warfighters."
"In every measurable way, the War Department is better off under Secretary Hegseth's leadership than ever before," she said, using the Trump administration's preferred name for the Defense Department.
3. Immigration and ICE raids
High-ranking Democrats — including Robert Garcia, the California Democrat chosen before the midterms to lead the House Oversight Committee if the party regained control of the House, which was confirmed — see the Trump administration's actions in the area of immigration as priority targets for possible congressional investigations.
They could look into allegations of misconduct by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents during operations across the country.
But these investigations may prove difficult and politically delicate.
In 2024, Trump campaigned on the promise of mass deportations of undocumented immigrants — a claim that resonated with many of his supporters.
But recent polls suggest that many Americans, including those who supported Trump in that election, are uncomfortable with some of the tactics used by ICE this year.
This means Democrats will have to walk a fine line between opposing ICE's tactics and appearing to consider broader public concerns about immigration, Painter tells the BBC.
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4. A third Trump impeachment
Democrats are divided on whether to try to impeach Trump for a third time.
Some, like Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, have expressed support for impeachment, citing what they see as an unauthorized war with Iran and other alleged crimes.
Others argue for a more cautious approach, arguing that any impeachment is unlikely to end with a Senate vote to remove Trump from office as he has denied any wrongdoing.
It is also unclear whether the party would be able to reach a consensus on which accusation would be chosen to initiate an impeachment process.
"I can do whatever I want, if I want to," Trump told reporters in the Oval Office in October, describing the impeachment efforts in his first term and the criminal prosecutions he faced as "very illegal things."
There is no guarantee for Democrats that any investigation will end with a substantial result against Trump.
But Subramanyam says the efforts would, at the very least, send a message.
"If we don't do something because we're afraid of repercussions, or because we think it won't be successful, or because they obstruct us, that will be bad," says the Democratic congressman from Virginia. "Not just for the next two years, but for the next 20 years."
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