Following a sweeping victory in the midterm elections that secured control of both the House and the Senate, the U.S. Democratic Party is preparing for a massive series of congressional investigations targeting major corporations that have maintained close ties with President Donald Trump.

According to sources cited by The Washington Post, Apple, Meta, and companies led by Tesla CEO Elon Musk are among the primary targets. Over the next two years of the Trump administration, Democrats intend to closely scrutinize corporate business activities and their relationships with the executive branch, focusing on how these companies forged ties with the president and what benefits they secured in return.

Key Areas of Investigation

  Elon Musk & xAI: The House is preparing to investigate allegations that President Trump utilized Musk’s AI chatbot, Grok, during the planning stages of a military operation to capture former Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Time previously reported that during Musk’s visit to the White House last December, Trump and Musk used Grok to query local public reaction to a potential arrest, to which Grok allegedly replied that residents would celebrate Maduro’s downfall given his unpopularity as a dictator.
  Apple: Democrats plan to probe Apple regarding its decision to remove an application from the App Store that allowed users to track the location of Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agents, allegedly done to comply with Trump administration demands.
  Meta: Investigators will examine Meta's use of non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) with local governments. The company allegedly required officials to keep business-related details—such as power and water consumption and tax breaks—confidential during the construction of massive data centers.

High Stakes and Corporate Fallout

Throughout Trump’s second term, Silicon Valley billionaires and corporate executives have built close ties by attending White House events and contributing to President Trump’s White House banquet hall construction project. The Washington Post reported that certain businesses invested in by Trump’s family and Wall Street executives are also receiving billions of dollars in government funding, a dynamic Democrats intend to investigate thoroughly.

Warning the business community, Representative Robert Garcia (D-CA), the front-runner to chair the House Oversight Committee, stated bluntly in a victory statement on election night: "Get a lawyer." Senator Ed Markey (D-MA) similarly signaled aggressive oversight, remarking, "We are going to need a new forest to print all the subpoenas we're going to issue."

In Washington, D.C., law firms are scrambling to assist corporate clients in preparing for the onslaught. Major firms have been holding emergency briefings for executives, while some are actively competing to represent Elon Musk. Startups in Silicon Valley are reportedly being advised to finalize their year-end funding rounds ahead of time to guard against potential congressional hearing subpoenas or defense spending cuts.

Robert Kelner, an attorney at the law firm Covington & Burling, noted that there is no doubt a sweeping investigation is underway.

[ⓒ Global Economic Times. 무단전재-재배포 금지]