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The U.S. Democratic Party is already planning how to utilize it if it gains a majority in the House or Senate in next week's midterm elections.
Midterm elections sometimes bring painful results to the ruling party that occupies the White House, but the Democratic Party's victory is by no means guaranteed.
However, if they secure a majority in one chamber of Congress, they have the power to issue subpoenas. A subpoena is a measure that requires testimony or orders the submission of documents, and the Democratic Party will also secure additional budget to begin an investigation early next year.
The Democratic Party is considering investigating high-ranking members of the Trump administration, and it is possible that President Donald Trump himself will be included in the investigation.
According to officials familiar with the discussions, the working group has already begun drawing up a list of possible investigative cases and witnesses.
Let's look at some issues that could be brought up for investigation if the Democratic Party wins the election on November 3.
1. The Trump family and financial problems
Democrats have made it clear that the Trump family's lucrative deals through its vast business empire will be a major focus of the initial investigation.
Democratic Representative Suhas Subrahmanyam (Virginia), a member of the U.S. House Oversight Committee, told the BBC, "We want to make sure that American taxpayers' money is being used properly and not being siphoned off by corruption or diverted for personal use."
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Matters being considered for investigation include collusion between the Trump administration and corporations. In particular, major areas of investigation include relationships with virtual currency companies and President Trump's son-in-law Jared Kushner's overseas business transactions.
The investigation could also include a $400 million (approximately 301 million pounds) aircraft donated by Qatar for use as Air Force One and multi-million dollar defense contracts awarded to companies linked to the Trump family.
“What is shocking to me is not only that the current administration and cabinet members, even the president and his family, are complicit in corruption and self-interest, but that they have revealed this so boldly and openly,” Subrahmanyam said.
The White House has repeatedly denied all allegations of misconduct.
“President Trump is focused on maintaining the Republican majority in Congress and building on the progress we have made to lower the burden on households,” White House spokeswoman Olivia Wales said.
He added, "The Democratic Party has no agenda to improve the lives of the American people. There is only a plan to hinder President Trump's common sense policy implementation and attack without basis."
A White House official said that no matter how the composition of Congress changes, the administration is "ready to respond at any time" to Congress' requests for oversight and submission of data.
2. Minister of Defense Hegseth and the Ministry of National Defense
Democratic lawmakers pledged to investigate how Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is carrying out the war on Iran that began in February.
These include the scale of civilian casualties, ammunition shortages, the cost of war, and allegations of insufficient preparedness of troops and military facilities.
Attacks on ships in Caribbean waters could also be included in the investigation, which the administration described as an operation to stop drugs flowing into the United States, according to an official with knowledge of the discussions.
Last April, House Democrats unusually proposed an impeachment bill against Secretary Hegseth. They claimed that Minister Hegseth had committed 'high crimes and misdemeanours', citing the war with Iran as the basis.
A bill of impeachment can be passed in the House of Representatives with a simple majority vote, but a two-thirds majority vote in the Senate is required to finalize impeachment and remove a person from office. To date, no cabinet member has been dismissed in this manner.
Some experts believe that if negative public opinion is formed due to the congressional hearing, it could eventually lead to Minister Hegseth being fired or resigning.
David Miller, a professor of political science at the American University in Washington, D.C. and an expert on the presidency, said, "If the situation is unfavorable for the White House and the media's attention is focused in a negative direction, there is a possibility that President Trump will kick out the relevant people because he does not want negative coverage."
He added, “In that sense, this could be a victory for the Democratic Party.”
Richard Painter, who served as the White House's chief ethics lawyer during the George W. Bush administration, told the BBC that the decision to go to war itself should also be scrutinized.
“The more important issue is this: This war was never authorized by the United States Congress. It doesn’t matter who the Secretary of Defense is,” he said.
He went on to say, “The Constitution clearly states that the power to declare war rests with Congress,” and argued that lawmakers should “subpoena the people involved” to answer questions.
Pentagon spokesman Kingsley Wilson defended Hegseth's performance during his tenure in a statement, calling him "a leader of change who has drastically reduced bureaucracy, driven innovation, and delivered results for the soldiers who serve our combat missions."
“By every measurable metric, the Department of Defense is better than ever under Secretary Hegseth’s leadership,” he said.
At this time, the Department of Defense was referred to as the 'Department of War', which is the name preferred by the Trump administration.
3. Immigration policy and ICE enforcement
Democratic leaders have identified immigration enforcement as a key issue to be addressed in future congressional investigations.
This includes Rep. Robert Garcia of California, who has been tapped to lead the House Oversight Committee if Democrats regain the House majority.
The investigation raised suspicions that Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents engaged in inappropriate behavior during immigration raids across the United States.
However, such investigations can be difficult to carry out in practice and can be politically sensitive issues.
President Trump pledged large-scale deportation of undocumented immigrants during the 2024 presidential election, which was well received by many supporters.
However, recent opinion polls show that a significant number of Americans, including voters who voted for then-President Trump, feel uncomfortable with some of the methods of crackdowns carried out by ICE in U.S. cities this year.
Painter, a former White House ethics lawyer, told the BBC that Democrats should take a cautious stance while criticizing ICE's crackdown methods to avoid being seen as ignoring broader immigration concerns.
4. Pursuing the third impeachment of Trump
There are conflicting opinions within the Democratic Party over the possibility of pursuing a third impeachment of President Trump.
Some lawmakers, including Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, expressed their support for impeachment based on the fact that the war on Iran was carried out without congressional approval and other illegal acts that could be grounds for impeachment.
On the other hand, there are voices calling for a cautious approach.
This is because even if impeachment is pursued, it is unlikely that the Senate will vote to remove President Trump from office. President Trump has repeatedly denied all allegations of misconduct raised against him.
It is unclear whether the Democratic Party will be able to agree on a justification for starting impeachment proceedings.
“I can do whatever I want,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office in October. He added that he views the impeachment pursued during his first term and the subsequent criminal cases filed against him as "very illegal events."
In an interview with the Washington Sun last June, Republican James Comer, chairman of the House Oversight Committee, criticized the Democratic Party as "a party that only knows one way," and said that the Democratic Party will "try to attack Trump."
There is no guarantee that the investigations that the Democratic Party may pursue will lead to substantive results.
But Subrahmanyam said the inquiry itself could send a message.
He said, “If you do nothing because you are concerned about the impact on public opinion, because you think there is no chance of success, or because the other party will refuse to submit data, it will have bad results,” and added, “The impact will not only last for the next two years, but for the next 20 years.”
