House Republicans are not the only lawmakers looking to conduct investigations in the next Congress.
Senate Democrats could use its subpoena power to probe Big Pharma, Big Tech, and more, the Washington Examiner reported.
"On our committee, it means we will be in a better position to take a look at some of the abuses that take place within healthcare, within the pharmaceutical industry, within labor," Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., told the Examiner on Thursday.
Sanders, who chairs the Budget Committee as well as a subcommittee for the Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions Committee, also told the Examiner that his colleagues likely will probe "the illegal activity of corporations" that negatively affects workers.
Sen. Ron Wyden, D-Ore., chairman of the Finance Committee and a senior member of the Energy and Natural Resources Committee, said congressional oversight is a "special priority" for lawmakers.
"Investigations are hugely important," Wyden said, the Examiner reported.
Under a power-sharing agreement between Majority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., and Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., for the past two years in a 50-50 Senate split, Democrats needed to secure Republican permission to issue the subpoenas.
Now, even after an announcement by Sen. Kyrsten Sinema, D-Ariz., that she will become an independent, Senate Democrats will own a 50-49 plurality in the chamber beginning in January. Sinema said she will not caucus with the GOP.
Democrats unilaterally can compel testimony and documents in a way that "greatly emboldens and enables our investigative power," Judiciary Committee member Sen. Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., said, the Examiner reported.
As for who or what could be targeted for investigation, "We're talking amongst ourselves about that," Blumenthal told the Examiner.
The Examiner suggested that Senate Democrats could follow the road map created by their House colleagues and probe former President Donald Trump.
House Democrats successfully fought to gain access to Trump's tax returns, though they might not have enough time to review them before the GOP takes control of the chamber.
Senate Democrats also could pick up where the Jan. 6 select committee leaves off.
Taking on Big Tech is one area in which House Republicans and Senate Democrats could overlap.
GOP lawmakers want to probe content suppression practices at companies such as Twitter and Facebook, and Democrats have long complained that those companies don't do enough to shield users from what they describe as harmful or misleading information, the Examiner said.
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