Probes probable if GOP reclaims Congress

WASHINGTON, Aug. 27 (UPI) -- Republicans hope to investigate the White House and its Democratic allies if they take back control of the U.S. Congress in November, congressional aides say.

Staffers say some would-be committee chairmen -- singling out Reps. Darrell Issa of California and Lamar Smith of Texas -- are gearing up for congressional hearings on subjects ranging from the auto industry and bank bailouts to the BP oil disaster in the Gulf of Mexico, Politico reported Friday.

Issa, the ranking Republican on the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, would like Obama's cooperation, but White House assistance isn't necessary, Issa spokesman Kurt Bardella said.

"How acrimonious things get really depend on how willing the administration is in accepting our findings (and) responding to our questions," Bardella said.

The possibility of Republicans racking up enough wins to take over the House and Senate in November is fueling anxiety in the White House, although administration officials are reluctant to share their concerns publicly, Politico said.

"I actually think it will be even worse than what happened to (former president) Bill Clinton, because of the animosity they already feel for President Obama," Lanny Davis, a deputy White House counsel who survived Clinton's trials, told the Washington publication. The Clinton administration was hit with a number of congressional inquiries after Republicans regained control of both houses in the 1990s.

One adviser to former President George W. Bush cautioned Republicans about being too eager to pounce on the White House should they take control of either chamber.

"If Republicans go on an investigative witch hunt when and if they gain power in November, then their power will be very short-lived," said Mark McKinnon, a former Bush adviser sympathetic to Obama's plight. "The American public wants Congress to work together, not to investigate each other."